Gehan Knights: Dreams of Baro
by Baromosa
Summary: Baromosa is a 15 year old boy, left alone after the death of his parents with the company of an old herbalist Mrs. Wanto. After he experiences several incredible dreams he is led on an adventure to seek answers and explore his startling visions.
1. Dreams of Shadow

A teenage girl surrounded by white light steps forward. Straight blonde hair runs down her shoulders, neatly groomed and washed. A white robe clings to her feminine body and her intense blue eyes stare out into the distance. She trembles a little before she speaks "We need you Baro, Bad omens are gathering."

In the horizon, a flame sparks to life. As it spreads it gives of shadow instead of light and seems to consume the light around it.

"Baro, Awaken!" The young woman yells. Soon the once spark has turned into a raging inferno covering everything in darkness. As the young women is consumed by the fire she moans and screams in agony.

"AHHH!" Cried Baro as he jerked himself from his dream. Each one seemed to be more vivid then the last, and he could remember more of it. Over the past couple weeks Baro had similar dreams about the young woman. She was about his age, 15, but he knew that he had never seen her before.

Rubbing his eyes, Baro slid out of his bed and walked across the hall into the kitchen. With a cloth from the counter he took some water from a jug on the table and wiped down his face and bare chest. Cool water was perfect for nights like this. He always sweated during these dreams, as if he could feel the fire and the terror the woman was experiencing. "Dreams suck." Baro concluded.

After a few minutes to let his breathing settle, Baro crashed into a wooden chair lazily and brushed his brown hair from his eyes. He, like his father, had long brown hair that came past his ears. It was a little tangled and uncombed, but all the same looked like it was meant to be that way.

Looking around, he scratched his ear while thinking of breakfast. His dining area consisted of two chairs, a round table, a hatch to a cellar, and a butcher's block, all made by his father, as was the rest of the house. It was plain to see there wasn't any food besides the one jug of water. Baro groaned and got up from the table.

Going back into his bedroom, Baro dug through his dresser and found a clean cotton shirt. Most of his other were dirty and weather worn from working out in the sun.

"Another day begins" Baro mumbled and pulled the shirt over his head. Off his dresser he grabbed his hunting knife and put it on a belt around his waist.

After he was convinced it was secured to his pants, Baro grabbed a small hand mirror from the dresser. He checked him self out from several different angles until he was sure he looked presentable before heading into town. His face was still cleanly shaven from yesterday so he figured it was good enough. While still admiring himself in the mirror, an old woman came to his door.

"Mr. Baromosa!" rang out the elderly lady. "Mr. Baromosa, Are you awake!" After a few seconds of contemplating what time it was, the forgetful woman said in a lower voice "Opps, sorry."

"Its alright Mrs. Wanto!" Baro shouted back as he headed for the door. "I was up anyway, is there a problem? I can't imagine you awake this early unless there was something very urgent. Like perhaps you wanted a cup of tea? I think I still have a cup around some place." Baro opened the door and started for the kitchen.

"If you have any that would be lovely, I've been up for the last hour running around trying to catch _this_ little devil!" Mrs. Wanto took a seat and produced a cat with black fur with silver tips.

"Beju! So that's where you were off to." Baro took the cat in his arms and stroked its head. The cat simply meowed indifferently and purred a little. Mrs. Wanto flashed a smile quickly then took a more stern posture.

"If it happens again I'll skin that cat." There was a brief pause then the two burst out laughing.

"As if you could catch him." Baro chuckled. "Remember last year when he knocked over that purple flower pot. What was in that pot again?"

"Tulips, yellow ones I think."

"Right, right tulips. I think it might have taken her a whole day to discover them and knock them over. I never saw a cat run faster from an old woman though." Both of them chuckled again and Baro went do the hatch into the cellar to look for some tealeaves. "Ah! Here we go. I thought I had some more. Would you be so good to grab two cups while I start the fire?"

"I'll take care of the fire." Mrs. Wanto said quickly and shuffled quickly to the fireplace in the third and final room in the house. She might have been an older woman, but Baro observed she still pitched in a hand like a teenage boy trying to prove he was as strong as his father. Between the two of them they often shared the work and household projects they started, being neighbors and the only neighbors in the little grove the houses were built in.

After the tea was made, the two relaxed in the more comfortable chairs in the living room by the fire. They talked for an hour about Baro's dream, the recent drought, and some local events in Marpin, the closest town.

"A blonde girl you say? Hmm. The only blondes I know our farther north, Marpin hasn't seen a person with that color for a long time." Mrs. Wanton reminisced after taking a sip of tea. "Do you plan on going into town today?"

"I was thinking about it, I need to get more supplies before autumn. Do you need anything while I'm there?"

"No no, but I sense a storm coming; A strong one. You might want to consider waiting for tomorrow. In any case I grow tired. I might stop by later in the afternoon, good day Mr. Baromosa."

Baro walked Mrs. Wanto out and put away the teacups. They were simple clay cups that were heated and glazed, one of them was chipped. Much of his house was very simple with few possessions. Not that Baro was poor, he had saved up a bit of money actually, but since his father's death he was not so concerned with acquiring wealth. What he kept either had sentimental value or a use, nothing else.

The two chairs that were in his kitchen used to be more, but he burned the others during a particularly cold and unforgiving winter. "Mrs. Wanto is my only real company anyway." He had said and didn't give it a second thought. Much like his father, Baro was patient but also rash in judgment.


	2. Prick us do we not bleed

Chapter 2: Prick us do we not bleed

After putting out the fire and taking one last sip of hot tea, Baro was ready to head out for Marpin. Over by the door he grabbed a faded green cloak and draped it around his shoulders. A silver clasp held it around his neck and Baro walked out into the brisk morning air. Moisture was still thick in his breath as was the grass with dew. Baro's horse stirred as he drew closer to the cherry tree that it was tied too.

Baro smiled widely and untied him. "Miss me?" Baro said and patted his brown coat. Losing no time 'Whirl whip' got up to let Baro mount him and take up the reigns. As soon as he was saddled Whirl whip thundered out of the grove and into the bright plains, eager to stretch his long legs in the morning sun.

Life was born anew in the valley plains with the rising of the sun. Rabbits scurried out of hidey-holes only to dart back in as Baro past them. The sun soon began to warm the back of his neck and pleasantly alerted him to the world around him. In the distance, forested mountains peaked to the sky, and in front of them stood Marpin. Its great walls loomed in the distance but even from far out in the plains you could see activity brimming through the town.

Marpin, the rouges den and city of all trade in the plains, the hive of all business, art, and culture. Fancy shops and proud townhouses towered over the winding alleys and streets. Thatched rooftops hid black chimneys that puffed smoke occasionally as late night fires were scuffed out and the day began. Immense walls were viewable from all locations and matched the size and grandeur of the buildings within. Baromosa always wondered what would have forced them to build defenses as massive as the wall. 'It must be ten feet thick!' he thought to himself. No matter how many times he passed it, he always commented on its size.

Just crossing the gate was amazing. If you stacked four men, each on top of each other's shoulders, the highest one might be able to touch the walls battlements. Town guards watched overhead and greeted people at its gate, shooting the breeze as merchants carted goods to the market square. Dwarven travelers haggled in foreign tongues wearing colorful, outlandish robes while gnomish trainers rode strange beasts to be sold as pets to nobles. One such beast had the look of a cat but stuck a frogs tongue out at Baro and made him cringe.

Baro even laughed when he saw a group of teenage girls strolling across the sidewalks wearing the latest in elven fashion. Long dresses of robins egg blue and dark green flowed down their slender figures, accented by golden thread woven into mystic patterns. Other sights and sounds filled the air and the shuffle of city life moved Baro around the square until finally he reached his way into the Drunken Ogre Inn and Stable. It was well kept for a city the size of Malpin, modest but had a neat looks thanks to its owner's constant effort. Many times before had Baro stumbled his way into the tavern for a couple days work and many times more had he been friends of Tassadar, the Innkeeper.

After making sure his horse was in the stable hand's care Baro took a small leather backpack out of Whirl whip's saddlebags and a pouch to be tied on to his belt. On his way out of the stable he bumped in to a rather large man wearing a brown apron. He was at least six and a half feet tall and had large arms that stuck out from broad shoulders. His head was topped with thick, curly black hair and he wore a long frizzy beard on his chin. In a deep voice he laughed and said 'Baromosa!' gruffly.

"Well met Tassadar." Baro smiled and clasped arms with the muscular Innkeeper. "I see you haven't burned down your tavern yet. Business must be slow."

"HA!" Tassadar bursted out and led Baro into the tavern of the Drunken Ogre. As Baro opened the heavy wooden door the noise became so much more apparent. People engaged in conversation at the bar and at private tables in dimly lit corners as the more physical people arm wrestled for bar bets and showed old scars to each other. Beer was spilled over tabletops and many cheers and grunts were shouted up to the rafters as a blonde elf man tossed aside a fierce looking thug. Baromosa and Tassadar both took a stool at the bar and leaned back to watch the next match up: A gnome beast handler vs. sneaky looking rouge.

"With all of these travelers you wouldn't happen to keep a spare room?" Asked Baro while keeping his eye on an exotically dressed dancer.

"Of course! I always have a room for a friend. If you need some money while you're in town we could always use the help." Tassadar smiled. "Perhaps I could introduce you too one of those dancers, eh?"

Baro quickly blushed and answered "No no, I'd rather stay out of that kind of trouble for now." Even as he said it he saw the dancer who before was gracefully moving her slender figure around the floor brought a man who got a little to close with his hands to the floor with several quick pressure points.

Tassadar let one more laugh out and patted him on the back saying "Oh and let me get your key. It's the same room you used last time, the one with the bookshelves. I don't usually loan it out to anyone since I like to keep it for you, so if you want to leave some things here your more then welcome to. I'll give you the key to keep then so you won't have to worry about it."

"Thank you, that's very generous." And Baro shook his hand again.

"I'll get it then. Enjoy your self, I won't hear of any guest of mine leaving sober. Ha!" and with that Tassadar walked off across the tavern into a hall. For the rest of the afternoon Baromosa stayed in the tavern and caught up on current events. A very polite dwarf smith explained how the tension in the eastern empire has forced much of his clan relocate to the edge of Marpin and others even farther. Other races were apparently equally eager to escape the madness. Other men joined the conversation, spreading rumor that Imperial troops prepare to battle in the Krush swamps and that necromancers have become a mounting threat to King Anthoria himself.

"Without Anthonian aide we might have lost our stronghold in Beldahorde. Who knows how this will turn out with magic, eh?" chuckled the dwarf sadly. A few tears rolled own his red braided beard. Before staggering off to join the rest of his clan he toasted with Baro to honor his fallen comrades and took in one last gulp of ale. "Knullan!" he yelled and hit the tankard back down on the bar.

In the corner several bards came together and started playing soft music. First, a quiet mandolin strummed festively and was joined by a fife that captured Baro's ear. Drums were added and soon dancers were made more lively and stranger danced with newfound friend. A tambourine joined the mix when three dancers came unto the floor. They were triplets dressed in rather revealing silk clothing of red, green, and blue. Each had long brunette hair and tied it up with a golden comb that was in the shape of a heron.

'**Thud, Thud, Thud'** Beat a bass drum and the tambourines shook again. The girls swayed their bodies staying in step with each other towards the forming crowd and lured every eye to their movements. The center one would raise one arm and sway in a circular motion as if redirecting currents of energy while the other two would lie on their backs and stretch their legs up to the roof.

'Thud, Thud, Thud,' The tambourines went faster and the girls got up and spun in circles, making their dresses twirl around their bodies. Baro watched with fascination as the colors mixed with each other and almost formed a harmony of color. He wanted to look away but nothing could pull his eyes off the show before him. 'Thud, Thud, Thud,' The smiles of the dancers held him in a trance until after several passes stopped and fell to the floor as the music came to an end. Applause erupted from every corner of the bar and the dancers rose to bow to the audience. Hoots and hollers followed until finally an old man took up the center of the gathered floor. The sun had already set and the elderly man dressed in old green robes took up a chair near the fire so he might keep warm as he preformed. Before he spoke he took his long, white beard out of his belt and stroked in straight and looked deep in thought. Baro thought he heard someone whisper 'The storyteller!' 

"Eighty years have I watched from this town time's slow passage…" the story teller began in a weary voice. "But tonight," he said getting louder, "I will tell you one of my favorites. It was told to me by my father, and his father before him, and is as old as the land itself. I give you, 'The Love of Zelana and the Moon'.

_Long ago, before Antony marched on the Ondion shores and battled orc and beast. Before colonists settled to the reaches of Balor and beyond there was Zelana. The fairest of folk in her homelands, she sailed across the sea and passed the great void into our world to seek new adventures._

_And that well does describe Zelana, adventurous and wild to the last. It was her force of will that convinced the gods to create the humans, and the dwarves, and every other beast of land and sea._

Baro then decided to go back into his room. By now only two drunken dwarves and a few sleepy inn regulars were left after the rather long and romantic folk tale. On his way back weaving through the remaining crowd Baro bumped into yet another teenage girl. This one was just a few inches shorter then he was and wore light leather pads around her legs and arms with fancy designs in red and blue paint around them. Everything was made so that joints could be stretched and folded and over toped a hard leather breast plate that exposed her tummy and a reddish skirt that covered down to her thighs.

Of course none of this was the first thing Baro noticed. Not her face, not her stomach, not even the many curves of her body. The first thing noticed was the midnight black wolf bearing its teeth as he accidentally stepped on his front paw. Its sleek fur on her back stood up and ruffled before she let out a fierce warning howl in pain.

"Watch it!" The now annoyed girl growled as she lost her balance and was sent tumbling into her wolf and a chair to the floor. Thud! Gravity slammed her down on her butt and Baro was pushed back against a wall. After a few seconds of recollecting himself from the shock of seeing a wolf this close up, he quickly went to her side.

"I am so sorry Mrs. Let me help you up." Baro stammered out apologetically.

"Its alright I guess." She said a little dazed. She took Baro's hand and lifted herself up. "My name's Crystal, this is Shadow, my friend and companion."

The wolf barked more friendly this time and licked the paw that was stepped on a few times before sitting up right. Crystal smiled sweetly and petted the she wolfs head and between her ears. "What's your name? I've been here awhile and I thought I new just about everyone."

"Oh, I'm Baromosa or Baro if you like. I just come here when I get bored with my house way out in the valley. What do you do here in Marpin?"

"Not that much anymore I'm afraid. Why don't you have a drink with me? We should talk more sitting down." Crystal motioned toward the bar and straightened her skirt.

"Maybe some other time, I'm really too tired from all this traveling. If you stop by tomorrow we can talk. I'd love to hear about you and your wolf friend."

"Ok, sleep well. Come on Shadow! Lets go find some fun!" And with that she skipped off with the wolf wagging its tail behind her.

Baromosa finally made it too his room in the back of the inn and locked the door behind him. He threw his backpack on top of the hip high bookshelf, literally falling on his bed while doing so. It was pretty soft, better then his bed at home even, and Baro soon was fast asleep against the cool soft pillows rubbing his cheeks. All the burdens and joys of today's journey melded away as quietness and peace replaced all the many doubts in his mind.


	3. Prick us do we not bleed continued

Chapter 3 (Prick us do we not bleed continued)

Authors note: This is really the second half of chapter 2 that I didn't include in the last update. Anyway, here is the dramatic ending to Chapter 2, Enjoy!

Baro shot out of bed at the sounds of a crash and breaking glass. Screams and explosions made him roll on his side and feel his heart beating like a mad man, pumping hot blood to his face. Quickly he grabbed his bag, unsheathed his hunting knife and opened the door to his room into the chaos outside.

The first thing he noticed was one of the town guard bent over a broken table, motionless to the glass fragments all around him. A small fire had been started around the door, so Baro quickly grabbed a tablecloth to dowse the flames. As he did so he noticed people running from the streets into their homes as four men marched down the street dressed in black, blue, and crimson robes. It didn't take long to guess their intentions, as soon as they met an old man who crossed their path one of the four shot a green bolt of magic at him and drained the life from his body. 'Necromancers!' Thought Baro and he ducked down behind the wall. He wanted to tear the thugs apart; his hands gripped the edge of the doorway so hard he thought he would crack it, but he would be a fool to take on four mages! From what Baro knew by storytellers, Necromancers were mages who dealt with altering life, even at times creating or destroying it. These four were most definitely the destroying kind, the kind that haunted nightmares and had sent the entire eastern empire on its toes.

Baromosa was forced to watch them march down the street edging nearer the Inn. 'Maybe if I surprise them I can get at least one of them.' He thought and looked around. The Inn had obviously already been hit so the ones coming down the street were separate from the ones who had killed the guard. Digging through the wreckage of glass and chairs Baro found a dead necromancer under the table. 'So you can be killed, interesting.'

With a sigh Baro lifted the guards spear, broken in half. Using its end he poked around the rubble until he saw something of interest. A scroll had fallen out of the mages robes; its seal had been cracked. Before Baro could read any of the parchment he heard footsteps scuffing outside. Clinging to the wall Baro took the half spear and prepared the throw it into whatever beast was under those black robes. 'None who processed that kind of ability could still call themselves human.' Baro concluded and stiffened his back more at the thought of the elderly man literally being sucked dry of his life.

A black boot stomped on the doorway before it turned around again before the owner of the boot was thrown back against the wall by an invisible force. It was a human male, now shaking his head in shock of being slammed into a hardwood wall. Baro was not as hesitant to react; he immediately ran up to his target and rested the spear end on his neck roughly. This one wasn't a mage, his sword sheath was on his belt and his armor was too heavy to allow for the movements involved in the arcane magic. Baro sneered and managed to bark out, "What the hell are you, a guard?"

The human simply squirmed under Baro's spearhead and gave him a menacing look. 'An armed guard for a mage wouldn't be a very valuable hostage to bargain with these attackers, I should just forget him.' Baro decided and wordlessly took a bottle from a near by table and bashed the thug unconscious.

Turning around to see who attacked this man, Baro saw Crystal locked in combat with one of the necromancers. She wielded a wiry thin scimitar vs. the mages short sword. Baro quickly looked around and threw his spear toward the black robed enemy that seemed to be dancing to the side of the battle, and caught him in his right leg. As soon as this happened the mage fell to the ground, gripping his leg and screaming out to the world around him. Whatever magic he had been doing must have been stopped because now Crystal seemed to have an easier time advancing on her duel.

Still feeling the heat of battle upon him Baro ran towards Crystal's attacker, eagerly feeling the surge of emotion that can only come from real danger and glory in combat. Before he could reach them however, the fourth man from the group of necromancers surprised him by charging him from behind with his shield. Baromosa was sent tumbling to his knees and bashed his head against the dirt road. Rolling over on his back Baro felt where the metal plate had hit him and the blood now covering his back. Dirt rubbed against where the shield had apparently ripped and sent ripples of continuous pain up his spine. His hands grasped at the knife on his belt but Baro felt so dizzy he could barely keep his eyes opened and soon passed into darkness. His last memories were hearing Tassadar letting out a battle cry as he ran passed him, and a pair of soft hands take Baro's head in their lap.

All of the sudden Baro spasmed to live and breathed hard as if he had jumped into freezing cold water. His head fell back into the healers lap and after letting his head stop spinning looked up lazily to the sky. Crystal's face smiled down at him, and she supported Baro to stand him up.

"What happened? While I was out it felt like cold water was brushing over me. It wasn't painful, but I almost thought I could sense you from across the current." Baromosa stumbled a little bit, then stood up and hunched his back over slightly.

"You were hit really bad. That soldier's shield was spiked and tore up your spine then bashed your head pretty hard. How are you now?" Crystal said, still looking Baro over for bruises.

"I'll live. Thank you, I wouldn't have made it with out you." Crystal smiled again and helped Baro back over to the Inn where Tassadar waited at one of the only remaining tables. A giant war hammer stained with blood was in his lap, and Tassadar was using a ripped tablecloth to clean it.

"So, here comes the warrior from his first battle. Was it what you expected?" Tassadar asked and raised an eyebrow. Baro shook his head and grunted as he took a seat near his friend.

"You did well for your first brawl, and with mages no less!" Tassadar patted him on the back and made Baro scream a small groan. "Oh that's right, it must still be a little sore."

Crystal shook her head and then looked up at Baro and said, "You did fight well though. If you hadn't distracted that second mage he would have strengthened his brother even more and would have killed me."

"His brother?" Crystal nodded in response and looked down toward her feet. Shadow came in from the street and sat by her, nudging Crystal's leg.

"Do you know who they are?" Baro walked closer to Crystal and knelt beside her, putting a hand on hers. She just sadly looked up to him and said 'This valley isn't safe for you anymore.'


	4. New Paths

Chapter 4: New Paths

Around noontime the hustle and bustle of the streets was just as much as the day before. Wives gossiped over what they thought caused all the damage outside the Inn while men stood around grunting about what they would have done in Tassadar's position. All in all very little had been disrupted and life moved on as it had before, that is all except for Baro.

He talked to Crystal as he brushed Whirl whip's coat and cleaned the dirt and grass out of his hair. Shadow every so often playfully swatted at the horse's tail and jumped behind one of the stalls to avoid being kicked by powerful rear legs. Still, Crystal wouldn't say much more about what had happened with the Necromancers, but Baro had learned a lot. She was from an average family in the northern providences where it was cold for a good part of the year. Something she described as white water that melted in your hands covered the ground and made everything really cold. This seemingly magical water fascinated Baro so much he asked her endlessly about this 'Snow.'

"Your crazy! Water doesn't stick like that. It certainly couldn't be made into a ball!" Baro laughed thinking of children pelting each other with this frozen water.

"Maybe someday you'll see it for your self. He he, just remember to duck." Crystal smiled and fumbled through a bag she shouldered on her left side. She took out some rolled up parchment and unfolded it for Baro. It was a drawing of the western empire and detailed all of the places Crystal had been, marked with dates and symbols. "Here," she said, "This should interest you."

"Wow, you drew this? It's very good." Baro said admiring the artwork. The edges were done with a golden weave design with several woodland animals on the corners including a squirrel, a wolf, a songbird, and a deer. Mountains and forests were drawn in surrounding a small sea that outlet into a larger ocean. Landmarks were drawn in with great detail and colored on such a small scale it was amazing. Crystal blushed when Baro commented on her work and put the map away after he was done viewing it.

After awhile Tassadar came into the stable with a bundle of food and supplies in his arms. "What's all this?" Baro asked inspecting the load. There must have been a tent for two, many blankets, enough combined food for three weeks, a couple of torches and different odds and ends.

"Crystal was right, you aren't save here any more. I read this scroll while you were knocked out, you must have dropped it when the solider hit you." Tassadar handed Baro the scroll that he had found on the necromancer earlier. It stated briefly in the common tongue 'Search for the last of the Gehan. Leave no survivors.' The scroll itself was very old and had some strange runes written at the bottom. Parts of it were burnt or torn but the entire message of runes stayed intact.

"I don't understand; what does this have to do with me? Who were the mages after?" Baro said with growing confusion.

"Baro, how much of your father do you remember?" Tassadar whispered close to Baro's ear.

"Small pieces, he was away most of the time. I can remember that my mother and Mrs. Wanto raised me." Tassdar nodded and replied

"That was his decision. He didn't want you raised in the city, but he also told me when you were born to watch out for you if you ever passed into Marpin."

"That's why you opened this Inn?"

"Yea." Tassadar sighed and wiped his forehead. "I was thinking about it anyways and when your father asked me to I couldn't refuse him. He saved my life on more then one occasion, and he was my friend."

"Was the name your idea?" Crystal asked as she laid back on the ground.

"Ha! We both came up with it, but that's another story. Baro, I promised to keep you save while in Marpin but I don't think that's possible now. These necromancers that hunt you, they hunt you for the same reason they did your father."

"What is it? Who was my father?" Baro raised his voice, on the verge of shouting. Tassadar simply shook his head and said

"That I cannot tell you. All I know is that it was in the service of the king. What the necromancers called the Gehan, that is a mystery that no common man could know. I will say that Thorv was a good man, I was proud to have known him."

Baro just shook and hung his head. So much had happened today it all weighed heavily on him. Baromosa thought back to all of the chaos earlier and the innocent people moving to Marpin to get away from this. Whatever it was about him, it had brought about the deadly magic users.

"Then I must leave this place. If these orders are spread among these fiends, they will not stop chasing me. There must be somewhere I can go where I won't endanger so many people." Baro stood up straight and looked outside of the stable into the distance. So much of the empire stretched out over the horizon and he hadn't seen any of it before he was almost assassinated.

"If you go you're not going alone." Crystal said and put a hand on Baro's shoulder. "Me and shadow are getting sick of this place anyway, aren't we girl?"

The wolf barked in reply and sat at Baro's feet. "We're going with you and there's nothing you can say to change are minds." Crystal mounted Whirl whip and looked up with a smile. "It could be fun riding a horse! How do you get these things to go anyway?"

Baro mounted the horse behind her and laughed with Tassadar. "Where should we go is the better question. I don't know where to hide, let alone where to find answers to all this."

"Well the nearest city is a couple days ride north, might take up to a week with two. " Tassadar suggested. "Watch yourself out there, you're the only real friend I have left."

"We'll meet again before the end Tassadar. Don't lose the tavern while I'm gone." Baro laughed a bit. Tassadar kicked a piece of burnt wood over and shrugged, heading back inside.

"Well, sounds like we're going to Glodin Falls," sighed Crystal. "Should be easy enough to get lost in that maze."

"You didn't like it there?" Baro asked.

"Its all walls! Nothing but towers and alleys everywhere and not a flower or blade of grass to be scene within the city. Oh well, who am I to complain? It's not like we have much choice."

"What about Shadow? Can he keep up with Whirl whip or should we have to stop for him the rest."

"Don't worry about her. If we need to hurry she can catch up with us during the night and sleep during the day. She's a great tracker you know."

"Ok well lets get going. We've got lot of ground to cover." Crystal blushed after Baro said that and there was an awkward pause.

"Crystal? Everything ok?" Baro said concerned.

"Just one thing… I was serious when I asked how these things go. I never rode a horse before…" Crystal said softly.

"Oh, I didn't know. I thought everyone knew how to ride a horse." Baro said surprised.

"Well it's not like everyone's BORN knowing how. It's not like it's MY fault!" Crystal said getting frustrated.

"I'm sorry, come on, there's no better time to learn. First lets just take the reigns like this." Baro put his hands around Crystal's waist and on her hands, guiding them to the reigns gently. "Good, when your ready to have him walk forward, just squeeze your legs against him and release as he gets going." She did as she was told and gave out a little shriek when the horse lurched forward.

"Don't let go of me!" Crystal cried when Baro loosened his hold on her waist.

"I'm here, don't worry." Baro said reassuringly.

After a few giggles and practice walks up and down the street, Crystal got the hang of it pretty quickly. She had learned how to steer, speed up, and slow down the horse pretty well and thoroughly enjoyed herself by the sound of her laughing.

Soon they had both agreed it was time to actually start the journey so Crystal guided Whirl whip to the Northern gate and rode off with Baromosa into the golden plains. The wind was fairly calm and unnoticeable compared to the rush of riding with a new person. Baro smiled into the sun as he saw Shadow dart his way across the field stealthily as if he was trying to avoid being seen. He laughed with Crystal and they talked about this new adventure as if they had been friends for a long time.


	5. The Teacher and the Student

Chapter 5: The Teacher and the Student

When the sun was almost resting on the horizon, Baro and Crystal finally stopped for the night and broke out camp. That after noon they only covered a short distance and both wordlessly knew their exhaustion from the early morning startle. Crystal pitched the tent and threw the bedding under it before collapsing in the soft mess of fabric. She groaned and rubbed her sore legs from the long afternoon of riding.

Baro simply smiled and got a small cooking fire going and prepared a light stew of meat, carrots, and potatoes. Shadow caught up to them half an hour later and sat down next to Baro. He made cute eyes up at him and rolled on his back pawing up towards the smell of slow cooking meat. After a sigh Shadow finally won and was thrown the few scraps of meat that weren't used. He gobbled them up and returned to Crystal under the tent and plopped down.

Soon the stew was ready so Baro took out two bowels and filled them, leaving one for Crystal next to the fire. Eventually the smell coaxed her out of bed and she took a seat by the tree Baro leaned on.

"Hungry?" Baro smiled and handled her the bowel and spoon.

"Mmm, Thanks. I love potatoes!" Crystal said, and then she shoveled in the stew with much enthusiasm. As they ate Baro passed out some bread and talked to her between bites.

"Tell me, how did you meet shadow?" Baro asked. Crystal slurped up a long piece of shredded meat and giggled before answering.

"Only apprentices are given spirit guides. I am the first girl to become one in three generations."

"Apprentice? What kind of apprentice?" Baro looked at her confused.

"Where I'm from, men may become warriors or learn a craftsmanship while women become wives and run the house. But a select few of us are taught to walk with nature and one day will be the spiritual leaders of the village."

Baro paused a moment and then asked, "So the wolf guides you?" Shadow then jumped between them and rested her head on Crystal's lap.

"Yes." She said and stoked his long black coat. "We go everywhere together and explore the worlds mysteries." Crystal laid down on her back and looked up to the stars. She and Baro talked more while gazing up at the night sky. They chatted and laughed about Baro's childhood, sharing stories and jokes between them. Shadow eventually fell asleep and rolled on his back as well, dreaming of sunny plains and chasing deer on the hunt.

Later as the night grew later, Crystal looked over into Baro's curious staring eyes. She smiled and said "Looking for something?"

He whispered back "I'm sorry but I've never seen a mage before, and today I met three."

Crystal frowned. "Three?"

"Well yes, you used magic to blow back one of the guards right?" Baro asked. Crystal immediately got up and ran for her hunt quickly say "I don't know what you are talking about."

Baro knew enough not to follow and stayed outside of its entrance. That is he did stay out of the tent and was about to turn away until he heard Crystal crying tears that melted his heart. Baro threw open the tent flap and knelt down beside her. She was hunched up in a ball with her hair covering her head so he couldn't see her face. When he tried to pat her back she trembled and showed him her deep brown eyes now wet and tear covered face. Baro felt her shake as she clinged to his shoulder and sobered 'I'm sorry' in unintelligible moans. He held her arms and let her cry until she fell asleep, leaving Baro wide-awake to contemplate his new friends outburst. He tucked her in, wiped the tears from her eyes gently, and left her in privacy and as he slept outside by the hot coals of smoldering fire.

After night had passed morning peaked over the hills and brought to light the valley and their exposed campsite. Baro had chosen a small tree to shield their tent but he felt uncomfortable waking up on such a large plain. He stretched and observed the horizon. No one seemed to be following them, and Marpin was safely behind them. Even the guards seemed a bit small for how long they've been riding. Then again, he had never been this far away from home.

Baro then looked over to the tent and brushed himself off before entering. Crystal lay sprawled on the floor with blankets going every which way. Evidently she was not a light sleeper. Baro smiled and left her to sleep and began to back up the smaller bits of camp onto Whirl whip. Crystal eventually came out of the tent and shied her way to the horse and avoided Baro's eyes. She mumbled good morning and avoided talking while they packed up the tent, when she did speak it was in very short words.

The next hour went by much like this. Crystal refused to ride today so Baro simply had Whirl whip trot beside her and headed north at her own pace. Baro was starting to wonder how much longer this would go on

'I wonder what happened that made her so touchy about magic.' Baro thought and glanced over to Crystal. 'Still, Its nice to have company. I hope she's all right.'

It was now noon and the sun hung over head. No trees could bear the sweltering sun out in the plains; they only prospered in the shadows of the mountain. Dizzy from the heat, Baro's vision started to sway until something finally woke him up: Crystal spoke.

"I'm sorry for before, I got carried away." She blurted out quietly. Baro stopped the horse and looked down at her.

"No I'm sorry, if you don't want to talk about it I'll keep shut." Baro replied apologetically.

"No I want to talk about it!" Crystal cried hurriedly, "Its just… well delicate." Crystal sat down against Whirl whip and Baro jumped down beside her.

"I told you before that I was a druid." Crystal started shyly. Baro nodded. "Most druids have a very strong connection with nature. Some of us can even learn to use nature's powers to heal or even summon things to us. Legends even tell us of elder druids transforming themselves into animals or trees."

"It sounds as if you have a wonderful gift compared to what I've seen other magic users wield. Why are you so sad about it?"

"I told you I was an apprentice, learning the ways of the druid. Doesn't it seem odd that I am fifteen and travel without a master to where ever I please?"

"I wasn't going to say anything…" Baro admitted.

"I know you wouldn't have." Crystal quickly smiled and then became more serious. "I… left after an accident happened in my village. After that I ran away from my family and started to wander by myself. I just feel so lost sometimes." Crystal looked down toward her feet with closed eyes.

"Everything's all right. You're out helping people now, what better way to use your powers then that?" Baro stood up and helped Crystal up. "You don't even know me and your protecting me from a dangerous enemy. Just from these last few days I've seen you do more good then whatever happened to possibly overshadow."

"Awh, thanks." Crystal perked up a bit and mounted Whirl whip. "Well what are you waiting for? We have along ride ahead of us."

Baro joined her and saddled the horse behind her. "You lead on for awhile, this heat is driving me crazy."

"That's another thing, we might need to get another horse the next time we're in town." Crystal said embarrassed when Baro brushed up against her.

"Fine by me, hit it!" Baro yelled and Whirl whip shot off as he'd been wanting too al day. Crystal was fine for the rest of the ride that day, and they even talked more about Crystal's training. Apparently her mentor Baubweh had taught her how to resist another mages thoughts, a very important tool in fighting a magic user who wishes you harm.

"See, it's all about someone's internal defenses. If you leave your mind unshielded, its like you're an open book. Anybody can walk right in and read everything, even burn it as easily as a dry piece of paper." She then took out a blank piece of paper from the saddlebag and set it ablaze in her hand to make the point, all of which left Baro dumbstruck. Crystal smiled at him and said, "We start from children learning how to resist someone trying to forcibly enter our minds."

"I see. Is this something you can teach me to do?" Baro asked with almost fright at the thought of being destroyed from the inside out.

"Its no power of magic that you must learn, its simple conditioning of the mind. Of course without magic you won't be able to easily tell when someone's entering your mind until it is too late."

"Please, teach me. I have to learn this if I'm going to survive another assault." After he said this Crystal squirmed in front of him a little bit but after a deep breath she said

"If you want to learn, we will start as soon as we finish eating tonight. Until then, you can practice this." She dug into the saddlebag once more and produced a small metal cube. It was made up of eight smaller cubes, four on the top and four on the bottom and had runes carved on each side.

"What is it?" Asked Baro taking the puzzling cube from her hands.

"That is the Rithmac. A child's puzzle that has the elements spelt on all of the sides. As you turn it you uncover knew words, see, all of the sides spin and rotate and no matter what combination you have it in there's always six elements shown. We use it to study the words and later to practice logical skills. Quite clever, try and record as many combinations as you can during our ride."

Baro twisted the cube few times and studied the marking. He recognized they were of the common tongue, but he couldn't make out more then that. Not wanting to disappoint Crystal however, tried to memorize the shapes and the different combinations they made. For the rest of the trip Baro played with the cube on and off, often getting frustrated with the cursed metal contraption. No matter how hard he looked at it he didn't have any idea what the symbols meant.

Finally sunset once again behind the hills and they broke camp. Crystal watched how energetic Baro was in pitching the tent and setting up the fire. 'Wow, he really takes me seriously. Makes me feel kind of like a teacher…" Crystal smiled as she entertained the thought of having a classroom of students, and then walked over to help with the tent. 'Boys' she smirked and redid the blankets that were messily piled inside.

Baro served and ate dinner rather quickly and eagerly but quietly waited for Crystal to finish. When she finally took the last bite she leaned back and sighed. She couldn't put this off any longer. She felt kind of uncomfortable with him staring at her, listening to every word, but on the bright side he was kind of cute.

"Ok, lets begin. Have a seat in front of me." Crystal took a deep breath and waited for him to sit down, which he did immediately. "Now close your eyes and listen to my voice."

"Alright." Baro breathed out slowly and shut his eyes gently.

"Breath, clear your mind of distractions. Just think of us on this dirt patch, pretend like the rest of the world does not exist." Crystal spoke in a soft, patient tone.

Baro was able to concentrate for a few minutes; he felt a little silly trying to 'feel' the earth but did as he was told. After awhile his thoughts drifted to Crystal's legs, then her skirt, and then…

'DON"T THINK OF ME!' roared a voice inside his head. Crystal never spoke, at least not out loud, but Baro could feel the wave of energy as Crystal. Something about its warmth made him know without a doubt it was she, and he blushed red.

'Concentrate on the wind, its cold flowing nature across your cheeks and its path al around you.' Crystal thought to Baro as she had done before. This time there was no anger in her message, and Baro was grateful she didn't say anything more of his 'distraction'. This time Baro stretched out with his feelings and listened with all of his senses. He felt the wind across his hair, but more then that he could sense wind patterns far above his head briefly before it vanished from his consciousness.

'Wait! There Baro, you almost had something. Stretch out, follow the current deeper…. Deeper to its birth.' Crystals voice wrapped around him and guided him back to where he was before. He became more sensitive and could now detect particles in the wind, small oscillations of energy as heat transferred between weather fronts, and then all at once something happened. His mind exploded with sensory information, every molecule in the immediate area gave off energy and clung to his sanity. It coiled around his head and squeezed him, forcing him to lock his head between his knees and cry out loud enough to wake anything in the valley. Frantically Baro tried to cut himself off, tried to deafen himself to the maelstrom of life around him until he heard himself cry out through his mind 'Crystal… help!' and finally fell to the ground.

Crystal jumped up and held his head in her hands. She gathered part of her own energy and fed it into Baro's mind. Cracks in his soul were seeable by her special senses and she tried to hold his mind together as best she could, using energy like cement on a failing brick wall. Green surges flooded both of their visions until Baro let out one finally moan and collapsed on the ground and was silent.

Slowly his breath began to return to him and small little tugs of energy-separated themselves from Baro's head. The suffocating force pulled itself loose and Baro began to sort the individual sources of energy out for himself. He opened his eyes and sat up to look around after several minutes of waiting on the cold dirt.

Heat and light emanated from Crystal, it overshadowed all other energy and heat on the plains. His own energy matched hers somewhat closely, though he could tell Shadow shared a similar yet weaker presence to hers. It was absolutely breath taking to see life as in really was, feeling her mind was like bathing in a warm bath. It was familiar and welcoming unlike Shadow's mind, which was strangely blocked to him. Baro edged closer to Crystal's consciousness as it became more intense.

Sadly Baro's new senses faded softer and softer until he felt as if he was looking at Crystal from across a great rift…. Then she was gone.


	6. Falls of Glodin

Chapter 6: Falls of Glodin

Baro awoke to complete silence several hours after his new, confusing experience. It was still dark out and hard to see, but Baro sat up and looked around anyway. His head was still pounding with a migraine when he was interrupted by Crystal.

"Finally your awake. You worried me so much!" Crystal hugged him so tight he thought his back would snap from the pressure, but found him self returning the hug when his mind caught up to everything. When she released him of course he feel backwards a little bit, then sat back up to face Crystal.

"Ugh, my head…. What happened to me last night? Everything is so blurry." Baro said and placed his hands on his temples. Crystal frowned slightly and cried

"This is why I hate magic!" And she looked up to Baro. "Remember when I healed you in Marpin, and again last night? I think I accidentally gave you part of my energy."

Baro twitched a little from his migraine. 'This is unbelievable!' he thought to him self. "How is that possible?" he finally said to break the silence. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, really. My energy will eventually replenish to where it was, but I'm afraid that yours will grow. Now that magic is open to you, your body will naturally generate energy to its limits." Crystal grew even more serious and drew in closer to Baro's face. "These next few days will be hard for you. You might be tempted to use your new energy as it grows stronger, it may even randomly release itself until it finishes stretching out."

Baro took a few minutes to think about what she said. 'Magic? Was it possible?' Could he learn to use the same energy himself? Baro looked into Crystal's starring eyes again. He thought about her own struggles with this mysterious energy, and her constant sadness about whatever it was that happened. Eventually he asked, "Will you help me?"

Her face finally softened and smiled. "Yes, I will try to help you get through this. But first we need some sleep." She punched him in the arm. "Don't worry me like that again. I was up half the night watching you." And with that she plopped onto the bedding next to Baro and closed her eyes.

The next week of riding was rather uneventful. Crystal watched Baro for signs of outbursts and taught him several techniques when dealing with his new powers. She insisted that he begin meditating to calm his mind to lose any loose and distracting thoughts. After sunset she would meditate with him and they would practice their ability to sense the world around them, and occasionally she would allow him to practice blocking her mind probes.

Baro loved this part of the day. Whenever he saw her _life force_ shown in such away he lost all other thoughts. It was life looking at a pure white fire that never lost its intensity or warmth. More and more he was able to control when he could use this sense, and at very least always felt the presences around him even when he wasn't using all of his senses.

Another thing he noticed was he and Crystal were having an easier time exchanging surface thoughts during meditations. He could send her short messages and feelings through their connection during those times. During these connections Crystal remained calm but Baro's heart still raced at the thought of using his new powers. He remembered Crystal's warnings at all times however, and did not go past what she taught him to do.

Shadow spent a lot of time with them when they rested but was absent for most of the day. Crystal seemed to miss having the wolf gone so much. She still kept a good pace with Whirl whip, but Baro noticed how she looked back from where they had gone when they stopped for camp each night. 'Soon we will be in the city and you can be with her again.' He had tried to comfort her, but she just nodded and waited patiently for Shadow to catch up. Baro also noticed how protective the wolf was of Crystal, and rarely let him get close to her while she was around them. After several days of this routine, the great fortress at the Falls of Glodin was in their sight.

"We're almost there!" shouted Crystal as they approached the light gray walls of the city. They seemed at least as tall as Marpins', probably a few feet higher and were of much higher craftsmanship. Every stone was perfectly cut to size and smoothed for a flawless finish. 'This must have taken entire clans of dwarves to build such a wonder.' Thought Baro to himself and smiled with Crystal even wider the closer they came. From the outside the city of Thelistheen was magnificent.

When they approached they were lightly searched and passed by the guard who allowed them to move through the double gates. Two story apartments and shops lined the streets with perfect blue thatched roofs and grayish stone houses. Happy people smiled as they passed and chatted merrily with each other. Everything seemed peaceful to Baro, right down to the birds calmly chirping on top of miniature fence posts. This was not true for every part of the city however. Most of the buildings were well maintained but Baro noticed that certain alleys they crossed were dark and broken; many of the people had desperate expressions or threatening stares. This mix of perfection and poverty so close to them made him slightly sick, and he hurried Whirl whip a little faster through these areas. Shadow stayed close to them and returned many of the threatening stares to their owners.

"This looks promising." Said Baro as he eyed a stable in the not so rundown part of the city. The innkeeper outside looked fairly more friendly then the people in the alleyways so he decided to investigate further. Crystal and him dismounted and approached the stable.

"Welcome to the Woodsman Inn, How may I serve you?" asked the rather small man out front.

"Would you have a human size room available and a place to stable our horse?" asked Baro politely. "We just came off a long trip from Marpin, and are probably going to stay the week. Maybe more."

"Yes, of course. If you would leave your horse in our capable hands, we can get you settled in. Follow me." The man bowed and turned into the Inn as two stable hands took care of Whirl whip. Baro turned to Crystal and asked her

"Would you like your own room with Shadow?"

"Hum? Oh um, whatever you want I suppose. As long as we have separate beds, I don't care." Crystal said. They both followed the Innkeeper and settled into the third room on the second floor. It had one bed, a desk and oil lamp, two bright windows, and a separate washroom. Two armchairs surrounded a rather small but cozy central fire place, and a cupboard over a counter space was set up for preparing food. Much to Baro's disappointment the bookshelf near the bed was left empty, but the room itself was usable.

"You take the bed." Said Baro to Crystal after the man left. "I'll be fine in one of these chairs or on the floor."

"Are you sure? I could get another room…" Crystal sounded apologetic.

"Don't worry about it. I'd like to explore the sights a little bit, want to come with me?"

"Sure! I've been dying to stretch my legs. Maybe we could see the park? There must be one in this big city. Wait! Let me wash up first!" Crystal cried enthusiastically and ran off into the washroom. Baro patiently waited while he unpacked his bag of the few books with him. He heard a sharp shriek from Crystal that made him look up, but then went back to what he was doing. One of the books he unpacked was a thin leather bound book that held important information and parchment that was his fathers. When he held it in his hands he kept it with him for a few moments remembering when his dad had given it to him, and then placed it on the shelf.

Soon Crystal came out with a freshly washed face her brown hair combed loosely down to her ears. One of her hands rubbed her blue eyes that seemed to be watery.

"I poked my self in the eye! Ow ow ow ow!" she still cried in pain.

"I'm sorry," Baro walked up to her and looked into her eyes. Her left one was reddish and almost bloodshot, but not too bad.

"You'll be fine, just try not to think about it. Come on, lets see if a walk around the town can make you feel better." Baro grabbed her hand and pulled her with him as he dashed out the door.

The sun was out and shining warmly and the few trees hidden between houses had turned a reddish orange shade. The harvest was over, and the only plants still well cared for were that of the royal garden. The hedges were green with a light blue pollen dusting on their leaves, and they looped and twisted just outside the Citadel.

A few years ago the governor had given the gardens to the people in celebration of his marriage. The garden featured a public walk, several varieties of roses, bushes, trees, and singing birds from all across the empire. A central court was built at its northern edge so it overlooked the waterfalls, and was just east of the Citadel's courtyard as well. At times the governor could give a proclamation from the pointed edge of the Citadel courtyard so his voice could boom over the waterfall and across to the garden.

"This is amazing." Awed Crystal as they entered the garden. Purple humming birds perched themselves all around the hedges, occasionally complaining to each other in musical notes. A white rose bush particularly caught her eye, and kept her staring at its beauty for several minutes. Orange, blue, and violet flowers were arranged around it, but the white rose bush stood prouder then all the others behind the entrance.

Baro smiled and pulled Crystal farther along. "If these beautiful flowers are at the entrance, there must be something even more fantastic at the end." Baro said smiling.

"Hey!" Crystal complained but happily followed Baro through the hedge maze. Blue and red chrysanthemums were placed in decorative pots along the wall and caught Baro's interest for a while, there small size and short ruffled pedals made him think of fire, or a shattered pitcher bursting with water.

They continued through the floral art works for over an hour when they finally reached the northern courtyard and leaned together on the stone railing to see the waterfalls.

"Magnificent." Sighed Baro and gazed upon the massive flow of water over rocky crags. Such force, such momentum of water was almost unbelievable. The same liquid that he drank every day and thought nothing of was now strong enough to blow back the toughest warrior and drag him down the river to his death.

Crystal sighed disappointingly. "What's the matter?" asked Baro concerned. "Don't you think this is amazing?"

"It's lovely but… I was hopping to see a special flower." Crystal trailed off thinking about it in her own little world.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing. Something I saw once when I was a little girl, my mother kept one by the windowsill. It's very rare in my village and I haven't saw one since." Crystal looked down then back at the waterfall.

"Show me." Baro asked and sent a light probe to Crystal's mind. 'Almost like a knock on the door.' He thought to himself amused. Crystal thought about it for a moment and then let Baro into her thoughts and sent him the image of a large violet flower with yellow splotches on the center of each leaf. It was a beautiful plant, in a old chipped pot on the windowsill of a small wooden hut. Flashes of people's faces seemed to lapse over this thought but the flower was the more powerful memory. After Baro saw enough they closed their mental link and Baro stared into Crystal's sad eyes. She missed her family.

"Come with me." Baro said and took her to and empty patch of grass. He didn't know what he was doing, but a warm feeling told him what to say and do. He thought about Crystal, and then a green haze filled his vision and Baro knelt on the ground. He reached out with his index finger pointed out and dug it into the ground. Green and blue sparks sprouted from his hand and body, forming a charge of power around him. Slowly a plant sprung from the ground and started to grow.

"Baro! Stop!" Crystal cried softly but was too shocked by his magic to say anything more and watched him. Baro heard her but could do nothing, he felt himself do this without even knowing why or how he was doing it. The flower grew into the violet iris plant Crystal had shown him before Baro collapsed on his hands and knees heavily breathing.

Crystal ran over to him and put a hand on his back, feeling his heartbeat explode. Baro eventually sat up and looked at her, then at the plant. It was a pretty good copy, strong and as beautiful as he remembered through Crystal's thoughts. Fresh pollen fell off it and tickled his nose.

"That was amazing." Said Crystal breathlessly. "Are you alright?"

"I'm find, I just wish I knew how I did it." Baro looked at her. "I wanted to give you something from your past."

Crystal smiled and helped him up. "Thank you." She said and kissed him on the cheek. They walked back to the railing as the sun was setting to watch it go down over the falls. Baro grinned and was happy to just relax when he noticed something odd. On the far side of the garden a man had mounted a crossbow to the railing and was hunched over it, spying through its scope. Down below a lady surrounded by Royal guards walked around a enclosed area.

"Excuse me a minute, stay quiet." Baro said and walked quietly over. Crystal glanced over and the smile disappeared from her face. She ducked down behind a bench and watch Baro move toward the assassin.


	7. Plots Thicken

Chapter 7: Plots Thicken

The mysterious man continued to assemble and make adjustments to his mounted crossbow. His face was hidden by a light gray hood and cloak that was meant to hide his dual swords, but while he was hunched over Baro could see his exposed weaponry. He was defiantly human, but it was impossible to tell much else from his disguise. 'An Assassin.' Baro thought to himself and stiffened instantly. All of the stress that had disappeared during his walk with Crystal returned to the back of his neck and he knew that if he did not stop him, whoever that girl was would die.

Baro continued to carefully approach the man and unsheathed his hunting knife. His head was spinning from the spell he had just casted, and thought to himself what an idiot he had been. What did he expect to accomplish? He was still very young, not even sixteen yet and he was about to attack a strange man, very likely a professional assassin.

As soon as he was close enough he stopped thinking about it and placed his arm around and over his neck, using the other hand to pull him back roughly. The man growled deeply in annoyance and kicked away from Baro who was powerless to stop him. Baro fought back and tumbled with the assassin, rolling on the ground.

With vicious kicks and struggling against each other's strength they rolled and fought for dominance. Baro had very little energy and could barely hold back the man who must have been a couple years older then himself. Soon the assassin took the advantage and was on top of Baro, hood fallen from his head showing his long black hair and unshaven face. "Now your mind you little brat!" He said gruffly and held Baro by the throat with one hand and prepared to pull back the other. Baro felt light headed and sick and could only resist uselessly, his face turned purple from the lack of air.

Suddenly Crystal was on him crying out various shouts and shrieks, she ran up and jumped on his back beating him with her bare fists. She had left her scimitar with Shadow in the room and instead chose to unleash her anger with savage strikes. "Get off of him you creep!" she yelled and grabbed around his neck to choke him. The man grunted under strain but still held Baro by the throat and used his other hand to pull Crystal's hair with all his strength downward.

"OWWWWW!" Crystal shrieked out and tumbled over his shoulder and on top of Baro's face. The assassin got up and replaced his gray hood, running off into the shadows. The two teens just laid there and felt their bruises from the encounter.

"Ugghh. Crystal. Are you alright?" Baro wheezed and coughed, grabbing his own hurt throat. He gently helped her sit up and they sat on the ground to collect themselves.

"I'm fine, but you don't look so good." She said and put her hand on a bruise already starting to form on his leg. "It's always an adventure with you isn't it?"

"He he. Lets go inform the guards and then get back to our room. I could eat after that, couldn't you?" Baro asked and got a nod in reply. "Ok, if you're sure your ok lets go."

They started to walk down toward the hedges when Crystal had an idea. "Wait, we should take a look at what that man left on the railing. Maybe there's something the guards can use to catch him."

Baro and Crystal took a look at the strange crossbow. It looked like the mount had been hand made to the assassin's specifications, as well as other attachments Baro had no idea what were for. There was a gold plate inlayed into the butt of the weapon that had a weird symbol on it. It was some ancient rune that looked like a twisting tree, so many branches and curves stemming from its base.

"Huh, interesting." Said Baro and he picked up the crossbow to examine it closer. The delicate equipment fell apart at his touch, obviously not full installed yet.

"Nice going, you certainly have the touch don't cha?" Crystal said jokingly.

"Shut up." Baro said embarrassed and led the way out of the gardens and around to the gates of the Citadel.

The sun was now completely behind the horizon and darkness had swept over the entire city. As they approached the gates the guards stopped them and shined a lantern in their faces.

"Who goes there?" Shouted one of the royal guards. They were dressed in the usual soldier garb, steel helmet and shiny halberds standing upright. Nonetheless they looked intimidating in the night.

"Baromosa of Marpin, I bear news for your Master." Baro shouted back with authority.

"Oh? What business is this that must be after night fall?" sneered another.

"Oh nothing that would concern a _guard, _just that I witnessed an assassination attempt on the governors daughter. But your right nothing that concerns him and this time of night." Said Baro coolly and started to turn around. The guards' mouths gaped and they immediately sputtered apologies. Baro smirked and followed the now gracious guards into the Citadel's keep.

Two guards and the sleepy governor welcomed them to the Citadel's hall. He yawned and stretched his arms as he woke to hear the disturbing news.

"My aides tell me you have witnessed an attempted attack on my dear Rahasia?" he said wearily. He wore a look of grief and confusion.

"Governor Tecaray," Baro said with a slight bow. "Today at sunset an assassination attempt was made from your own royal gardens. The thug carried this." Baro outstretched his arm presented him the crossbow.

Tecaray picked up the weapon and examined it briefly. Baro was unimpressed when he simply shoved it into one of his guards' arms and barked, "What does this mean? Who the hell are these people?"

The guard took an equally useless look at the crossbow and said, "I haven't a clue sir." After a few moments he suggested, "Perhaps we could investigate local weapons vendors? Surely they keep tabs o such records."

"That's a good idea, Have all weapons vendors arrested and interrogated!" Exclaimed Tecaray.

Baro did not hesitate to dispute the hasty order. "Perhaps a more discrete action would be best Sir. Shady deals such as for this bow are done in alleys that your men could not fine, and with people that you cannot trace." The Governor turned red and was about to bark another command but Baro quickly interrupted him again.

"If I might suggest something, have your men inconspicuously keep an eye out for the marking on the crossbow, it most likely is a gang or guild of some sort." Baro said calmly and watched his face cool down slowly. Crystal looked worried for a minute but stood there awkwardly waiting for this whole situation to be over. 'Stupid boys and their stupid wars.' She thought to herself.

Soon after Tecaray finally conceded. "Very well, all men shall keep on guard for any bearers of this mark. Scribe! Get a scribe in here! I want him to copy this to a scroll and have it placed in my desk. Guard! Show Mr… Ugh, did I get a name?"

"Baromosa sir, Baromosa and Crystal." Said Baro politely.

"Baromosa and Crystal, thank you. You may leave now; Rahasia will be safe from now on. Thompson, show them out. I will retire. Such a long day…" And finally he turned around and left them.

On their way out, Baro and Crystal laughed about the rude official and talked all the way back to their room. Shadow waited patiently for them to come in before tackling Crystal in mid jump, licking and sniffing to show her how much she missed her. "Oof!" wheezed Crystal from the impact of dog bringing her to the floor.

"Oh look, he missed you!" laughed Baro and walked into the kitchen and got some things to start a fire for them to cook on. Crystal got up and lit candles around the room that burned the sweet scents of the cinnamon melted into them. She then sat comfortably in one of the armchairs and watched Baro stoke the fire.

Baro relaxed when he finally felt her mind brush against his. 'Today, in the garden. Before we were interrupted by the attack, what were you thinking about?'

He looked at her surprised. "You do not know?" She continued to give him a friendly stare that made him anxious. "I was thinking of that flower you showed me, its really pretty. As was the sunset today, did you notice how much more red it was?"

She nodded and patted Shadow who came up beside her. Baro sat back in the chair beside Crystal and watched it, but found it hard to stop glancing across to Crystal. She caught him once or twice, but she smiled and the two kept in friendly conversation from across their mental link. Secretly Baro tried to hold himself back from getting too relaxed, but Crystal's openness to talk with him was irresistible. As the exotic aromas filled the room Baro withheld less and less of himself from her until they could share everything. They both blushed on and off when they talked about the sensitive parts of their past and stayed up into the hours of the morning.

On the roof of the Inn, a man waited. He was never a particularly violent man, never seeked more then his share of conflict; but at the same time he never backed down from a challenge. This couple and wolf companion was a challenge.

He sighed and scratched his face. The stakeout was always about waiting. He hated waiting. Ever since he started this job it had always been about waiting for the right moment, the right time to take his target. The uncomfortable rock under his back didn't help in this waiting, but he'd get around it. Situations like this required patience, and his time was almost up.


	8. Returning Visions

Chapter 8: Returning Visions

Baromosa's Dream world:

Baro found himself walking down a strangely familiar stone hallway that was well lit with torches. Windows in the room up ahead made it seem cozier and a place he wanted to be. After passing into the room, furniture became apparent and Baro saw Crystal sitting on a loveseat holding a baby in swaddling cloth. She smiled up at him and waved the babies hand in his direction.

_This whole scene seemed hazy to him, almost like slow motion. He walked around and laughed with her like there was not a care in the world. Suddenly he felt the urge to continue to move and he walked away from her into the next hallway._

_A battlefield on distant grassy plains emerged next and disappeared was the hall he had just left. A blood red sky harbored black clouds of war above him, and war drums beat like menaces from afar but still close by. Baro looked down to see a solider at his feet, reaching a hand up to him. This time it was not hazy or even carefree, he could hear the man moaning for his life but Baro walked away to his amazement. He struggled to go over to help the man but it was like he was watching a movie inside his own body. He continued to walk away and felt the man's tortured soul weigh heavier on his heart. Armed fighters now charged down the hill ahead and one of them sliced an axe into Baro's forehead._

_Now Baro was laying on a bed with the softest silk sheets he ever felt. He wasn't wearing a shirt so all of the muscles in his back fell like pudding against the cool bedding. His breath exhaled calmly and Baro rolled over on his side before opening his eyes. No one was next to him, but the bed was large enough for two people. This felt odd to him though he didn't knew why and he got up to look around as if he had woken up early morning or late night restlessly._

_There was a picture of his father in full armor and a lady in a white gown on the table. They were under some sort of flowered archway and wore smiles that expressed an unimaginable happiness. This made him feel happy for a moment but with an uneasy feeling of a regretful memory in hiding. Baro kept looking around the room and found a letter that had been torn open and had wet spots all over it. Picking it up with a shaky hand he read the notice. It was addressed from the King's service, and said that it regretted to inform him of the death of his wife…._

_Baro dropped the notice in shock and looked up into the near by dressers mirror. First he saw his fathers face and jumped back away from the reflection. Then the room transformed to a slightly different castle and his face returned. A sigh of relief settled Baro and he sat down on an equally comfortable bed. Shaking his head he turned to his nightstand to see a similar picture… Of him and Crystal…_

_Blackness surrounded Baro and red flames encircled him briefly before a figure stepped forward. I was an old woman, hunched and wrinkled, hooded in dark gray robes. He face was of Mrs. Wanto, but it was far more serious then any face Baro had seen her wear. _

"You are strong indeed to have seen as much as you have." She said plainly as if none of this interested her. "This was always possible, but we never did know if it was in you."

_"Can you explain all this?" Asked Baro weakly. The flames around him and those in Mrs. Wanto's eyes rose slightly but then returned to where they were._

_"For one in your life would you use that brain of your how it was meant to be used? All of the pieces are here, all you must do is put the puzzle together." She said with hints of irritation in her voice._

_Baro thought for a few moments but didn't want to speak any more. Fear gripped his throat and kept him from speaking until a thought occurred to him that never before. The fire around him, it represented something. Energy, energy being consumed._

_"Very good." Smiled Mrs. Wanto. She took off her hood and light flooded the room, dowsing the flames and drowned all shadow. "What else are you thinking about?"_

_"I'm using magic, that's the energy I am consuming." Baro finally said. It felt good to hear him say it aloud, almost if it was a secret that never before he reveal. The image of Mrs. Wanto laughed at him._

_"Ha! You think you can use magic now like that female you travel with now! She is beyond you…. At the moment. You have stepped through the door and onto the road but there is much road left. Tell me what you plan to do next when you awaken?"_

_Baro starred at her confused and came to a second realization. He was asleep._

_"Yes, you are asleep. You fell asleep some time ago talking to that teenage girl you talk to constantly. She put you too bed before she herself succumbed to nights tiring pull." Mrs. Wanto seemed amused._

_"How do you know all of this? You never leave you house!" Baro exclaimed. _

_"I still remember the generals orders, I follow them still." She said simply. "Now sleep young warrior, sleep. You can ask me more when we meet again, but for now just listen to my voice and sleep…" With those last words Baro allowed himself to sit back quietly and listen to the old witches warnings._

_'When you enter your dreaming state, do not awaken yourself prematurely. This is risky during your early training, as you have not controlled the mana within you.'_

_These words washed over him like the ocean's waves on the shore, they seemed to become louder and closer, only to retract and soften and then re-expand over him._

_'Your teacher will meet you on the road to the capitol.' These words now echoed against the others and ran through the currents of Baro's mind. He struggled to ask something to her but he felt too tired…too much energy had been consumed…_

_'This connection will end soon so there is one last thing you should know. Do not attach yourself to those you travel with…they are liabilities to your survival. You must be prepared to sacrifice them." Words now hissed within him until he finally slipped out of this dream like consciousness._

"Baro." Whispered Crystal over Baro's ear. He opened his eyes and saw her face back-lighted by the morning sun. "Sleep well?" she giggled.

"Yes, very well. How about you? Last night was so… relaxing." Baro sighed and sat up in the bed.

"Hum. I know what you mean." She said and sat down with him. Shadow immediately jumped up on the bed as well and laid down between them. "Ready for breakfast? Or should I say lunch? I think you slept through most of the morning."

Baro just starred out the window and to the skyline of the city from their second story apartment.

"What's wrong?" asked Crystal concerned.

"Huh?"

"You seemed distracted, worried about something." Crystal moved in closer to him and made Baro blush remembering his dreams. "Tell me."

Baro looked over into her blue eyes. They starred back at him with worry and concern, but of a friendly sort, much more emotional then Mrs. Wanto's stoic expressions. He looked away from them before he could say anything.

"I had another dream last night. I think I was dreaming into the future. Or maybe it was the past… I can't tell." He grabbed her hand softly now and looked back at her. "I need to talk with you."

Alleys of Glodin Falls – Merchant Quarter

Baro's stalker now prowled around the merchant square with a bad attitude. For the last six hours his target was sleeping with some girl and had offered little of the information his clients were up in arms about. The day before he almost gets himself killed by a two-bit thug. Nice.

He sighed and scratched his face again. 'I really need to shave.' He thought to himself. He'd been on this stakeout for two days now and was growing tired of it. 'Babysitting, that's all it is. Some brat goes and gets himself the attention of dangerous people, and they think he's important. Mean while I have to bust my ass tracking this prick so he can lay around with a tribal floozy."

Next to him a very large man browsed through a trader's knife collection, leaving his money pouch exposed on his back left side. It only had a small string holding it on his belt, so when the stalker expertly knocked himself 'accidentally' into the man he palmed the pouch without so much as a suspicion. By the time the victim would notice he'd be long gone.

'Well at least it wasn't a complete waste of time.' At least if this kid turned out to be nothing like he though, he's getting paid. Sometimes thieving seemed wrong and he secretly stayed up in the hours of the night thinking of its moral implications, but moral implications didn't pay the bills. Only his targets did, and now that it was mid day it was about time to head back to his targets apartment.


	9. Realizations

Chapter 9: Realizations

Baro chose his words carefully when he retold what he could from his hazy dreams. Crystal listened intently about his encounter with the dying soldier, Mrs. Wanto's messages, and his father's letter from the king. He thought to tell her about the baby or his future predictions, but was too nervous and anxious and decided to wait until later. There connection made them more intimate but this might be normal for magic users and made him confused to no end.

'Could we really have a baby?' Baro thought to himself. He was sure not to send this to her and keep it within his own mind.

"What are you going to do?" asked Crystal breaking his anxiety.

"I'm not sure, I'm supposed to find a master on my way to Shriladen. Maybe he can teach me more about myself."

"I'm sorry I can't help you more. It's just…" Crystal's eyes watered slightly and Baro felt the edge of one of her blocked memories. During the last day and a half they had both kept their minds open to each other, whether consciously or unconsciously Baro didn't know. But of all the times they exchanged thoughts Crystal had always kept parts of her last year in Snowfall, which Baro discovered was her hometown, blocked to him.

"You don't have to explain, I know how painful it is for you."

"Yea… so. How are we going to get there?"

"From the map it will be a long trip." Baro pulled out Crystal's map and pointed to the marking past the mountains Glodin was resting on. "To the north we have Islan's, mark, we could go across the plains along the mountains until we hit Shriladen. The other possibility is to go directly through the mountains and visit the Dwarven cities, most likely Beldahorde." Baro traced the map with his finger and sighed. It was a lot to think about.

"That's a big choice to make. Shriladen just seems to far away…" Crystals voice trailed off. Snowfall must be hundreds of leagues away and there was no time to make a side trip; it was in the opposite direction and clear across the empire.

"Crystal, you've been more for me then I could have ever asked you. If you wanted to leave, I'd understand." Baro looked at her as she thought about her home. He could see in her eyes the memories that must have been playing in her mind, but after a few moments she finally spoke.

"No, I don't want to leave yet. How could I? You have such an unknown journey ahead of you. I want to help."

They sat in silence for many minutes until she looked up at him and smiled. "Besides, you'd get lost with out me there". They both giggled like friends.

"Enough of all this talking; lets get this day started." Baro said and stretched in the light coming from his window.

"Yea, get out of bed!" Crystal jerked him by the arm on to the floor.

"Whoa!" Baro said shocked. Kneeling over him she said, "I wanted to do some shopping while we're here." She pulled him up and out of the bedroom with his arm under hers.

He laughed and said "Ok, ok we'll go. Let me get some shoes on, geez."

Crystal was already dressed and washed up before she woke Baro so he just threw on his shoes and fixed his hair quickly. Then they walked out into the street, this time with Shadow following close behind them. Every time Baro looked back the wolf was starring at him, watching him closely. At first he thought he was imagining things but it was always in the back of his mind that this spirit guide was looking out for him.

Sunlight danced over and through the tops of buildings around them lighting all of the sops brilliantly. Venders hung their wares of seashell necklaces and earrings up high hopping to attract a lady to their shops, and merchants hung jeweled weaponry from windows for the male companions that followed the ladies.

White steam plumed from a smithy's shop and made Baro cough. Crystal turned back and smiled saying 'Catch me if you can!' and took off down the streets. Baro followed laughing, closing his eyes through the smoke and chased after her playfully. When they finally caught up to each other they strolled through the market squares unaware of anyone else around them. Eventually one shop in particular caught their eye, and Crystal led Baro in to browse through the collection. Inside the shop were several counters and open wardrobes displaying all kinds of clothing from all around the world. Dwarven robes, gnome vests, Elven garments and feathered hats were lined up in neat, easily accessed rows.

"Would the lady like to try on some Elven wonders? Each and every silken cloth woven by master seamstresses of the art! I ask only a mere ten silver pieces for your favorite piece." The trader asked in a charismatic voice.

"Oh! Baro they look divine!" Crystal swooned over a light blue one with white lace woven in mystic patterns.

"You like it?" asked Baro.

"Their wonderful." She breathed, very much taken with the dress.

"Try it on." Coaxed Baro grabbing ten silver pieces from his belt.

"Oh no, I couldn't." Crystal said brushing the soft material.

"Please? You deserve something nice."

She thought about it for a few minutes and then said,

"Ok, Give me a minute!" She smiled excitedly and ran off into the near by changing room. Baro handed his money to the trader and looked through some of the dress shirts while he waited. A green velvet shirt caught his attention the most, its soft feel and fine craftsmanship was fantastic. Gold buttons molded into wolves' heads reminded him of Shadow who stood at the door still watching. It was a friendly stare, but made him cautious of moving himself in a non-threatening way.

"Ok, how do I look?" asked Crystal shyly stepping out onto the floor. The smooth silk dress clung tightly to her body tracing her slender legs until in came to her chest and parted into a 'V'. It wrapped around under her arms where it met again and swooped low behind her back. She looked at him nervously and bit her lip when he saw her.

"Magnificent." he said with a smile and walked toward her. "You look wonderful, do you like the designs?"

She nodded and smiled more easily. "Thank you." She whispered and kissed him on the cheek. "Aren't you getting anything?"

"I want to do some more looking around first. Let's get a box for your dress though, I want it to be perfect for you." He said and let her go back into the changing room.

After the dress was wrapped and boxed, they left back into the streets to browse some of the other shops. They found stalls that sold knives, wine, fish, cloth, gems, and many odd trinkets that Baro had never seen before. A fountain in the center of town made them stop to rest and look at the shooting water from a stone masterpiece of a whale spraying water from its top. Sitting on the marble edge Baro took a breath and looked at the city.

Most people stood around talking to friends and family, exchanged gossip and traded goods in friendly voices as usual. All did that is except two people Baro noticed out of the rest.

One was about one hundred feet away facing them; he stood leaning against a building by himself and glanced away whenever Baro looked toward him. Another man stuck out because just now he was pushing his way through the crowd toward Baro, shouting filthy curses with a hand under his cloak at his hips.

'Crystal, take Shadow and go back to the room.' Baro thought to her, but she already saw them and wasn't going anywhere.

'We'll do this together.' She thought back and put her dress box in Baro's backpack. Baro smiled at her but worried what was going to happen next.

Baro helped her up and they walked away from the man that was heading for them. From the corner of his eye the man that had been standing still was now running diagonally and cut behind them. The shouting man got even louder and from the sound of him and Baro yelled, "Run!" grabbing Crystal's hand.

They weaved through the crowd together dodging the traffic of city life. His heart pounded blood up to his ears and made him hot headed from running. Under different circumstances he might have had fun running with Crystal, but running for your life doesn't hold the same appeal.

"Look out!" Baro yelled and jumped over a crate while kicking it, sending its content of oils spilling behind them. Crystal jumped over just in time and turned around to look at their pursuers, not knowing how close they actually were. The closet one bear tackled her and brought Crystal to the ground screaming.

She shrieked "BARO!" and wrestled with the thug. Baro turned around immediately and was enraged by the attacker. He charged back toward her and unsheathed his hunting knife from his belt. His intention in his fury was to shout a grand, demoralizing battle cry, but all he managed was a gruff roar of unintelligible words and growls.

Before he reached them the second thug did something that made Baro stop short of the scene. He picked the man on top of Crystal off the ground and slammed him into the wall. They fought over each other and tried to get over to Crystal before their competitor, but now Baro was standing over them and not happy.

He breathed heavily and growled softly which made the two thugs stop and stand up, worried what he would do next. Baro took this advantage to look over Crystal. Her knee was scrapped and her clothes were ruffed up but she seemed okay, if frightened.

"Let me take them now Kazekage!" yelled the more violent of the two that had tackled Crystal.

"We were under orders, we we're not supposed to strike yet! Now the boss will give this assignment to somebody else you idiot! Our cover is blown." The other one said and gave a menacing look to his partner.

Crystal thought to Baro 'Run, I can't take care of them but I don't want to risk you getting hurt by it.'

'Hurt by what?'

'You'll see.' She thought calmly and relaxed against the street.

"No! I'm not leaving here and neither will you two if you do not run away right now." Baro walked in front of Crystal and prepared himself to fend off the thugs.

An awkward silence settled over them as a passerby starred off the main street, interested in this disturbance. Baro's arms tensed and his head still felt hot with anger. 'Come on, make a move.' He thought to himself. 'Or run away, I don't care. I won't let you hurt her.'

Finally the violent thug reached for his double swords when Kazekage struck him with lightning reflexes. A blow from his hands upside the head and a strike to his back sent him to the ground clutching his back. He stood over his victim and barked out, "I didn't sign on for murder Raik. I was told to watch and protect them, and that is the limit to my options."

Raik wheezed and snarled, "You'll never get away with this. You broke the code! None from our creed shall ever fight the hunter of the same target. Your finished!" And with that remark he rolled up and ran for it, ducking another blow from Kazekage's iron fists.

"Let him go." Breathed Baro, eagerly putting his knife on his belt. "If he comes back you will kill him, and if he does not you will not care."

Kazekage looked him in the eyes and asked him, "When do you plan on leaving?"

Baro was taken back to how straightforward he was but answered, "Today."

"Good, I will go with you. There is nothing for me here now and I must protect you."

"So sure are you?" asked Baro curiously. "Why must you protect me?" Kazekage looked at him as if he were crazy.

"Why, you are of great value. My client has placed great importance on your life, and had charged my with keeping it intact at all costs."

"Your client? Who is this person?"

"I do not know." Kaze said quickly. "He keeps himself very secretive. He wouldn't even tell me his name, but promised a large sum of money for your safety."

Crystal bursted out angrily, "In case you didn't notice, I'M ON THE GROUND OVER HERE!"

"I'm sorry, lets get you cleaned up." Baro said kneeling down. "I don't think we have anything to fear from this one." Baro then told her mentally about his suspicions his future master sent the bodyguard.

The four of them headed back to the room after Shadow finished sniffing Kazekage. Only after several minutes of constant sniffing would she allow Kaze to come with them. She nearly bit his leg off when he tried to escape her nose, but made up for it by letting him pet her slick, black coat. There Baro washed Crystal's leg for her, and introduced each other to their new ally.


	10. The First Steps

Chapter 10: The First Step

"Really Baro, I'm fine." Crystal complained as Baro wrapped her leg.

"Just hold on a minute, I'm almost done." Baro finished tying the bandage around her knee. "There, all set."

"Lets go then." Kazekage said standing by the windows. He had checked the streets every few minutes since they had arrived and seemed a bit uneasy.

"In a hurry?" asked Baro. Kazekage made no reply but kept his attention to the streets.

'He's not very friendly is he?' commented Crystal mentally.

'I know what you mean. We should try learning more later, but for now lets just get going. Are you ready to leave?' Baro asked her. She nodded and got up slowly.

"Alright, lets head out." Announced Baro. He took out a map and placed it on the floor to show Kazekage. "The plan is to ride out to Islan's Mark, a outpost that surrounds some historical rock."

Kazkage nodded. "I've heard of it. Something to do with King Antony's fight against the native shamans. Back round the empires founding it was something of a big deal, as far as I know now it's used for smuggling and refuges."

Crystal cocked her head to one side. "Refuges?"

"People whose homes were destroyed from war. They all headed for Islan's Mark, since it's the only place where they can go. Anthonian aide comes through there to give away supplies, help them to build homes, that sort of thing."

"That's so sad…" Crystal said. "How many refuges were sent there?"

Kazekage shrugged. "Does it matter? There's enough to take all the housing, too many to feed, and not enough money to support them." He made a very cold face towards the window again and stopped talking.

"Well it's the nearest point I can see between here and Shriladen… any other suggestions?" Baro asked him. He still didn't say anything. "Then Islan's Mark it is. We should buy another horse, whatever else we need, and get going."

"I'm ready." Said Kazekage plainly.

"Same here." Crystal got up and stretched. Shadow barked in reply and the four of them walked down stairs and into the stables.

Baro examined all of the horses and had a long talk with the stable operator. Only two of the adults were for sale, a brown one that had been left here by its owner, and a white one that had been found in the plains.

"You don't want that one sir," offered the stable keeper. "She's much to wild. The last time anyone tried to ride her he was sent off into the side of the barn. It's got the mark to prove it." The man pointed to a sizable dent in the stall's door. "Took all of my stable hands to round her up after that, you'd be safer with old rusty."

Crystal walked up to the white horse. Its name was written over the stall. _Lightning._ She patted the horse's head softly, but it reared to her touch and whimpered. Crystal then opened the stall to get closer.

"What are you doing?" complained the operator loudly but Baro held him back reassuringly. "Just watch." He said calmly.

Crystal opened the stall and waited. The horse backed up at first and stomped its front leg in protest. Crystal waited patiently and watched the horse, its eyes seemed so sad, like it was afraid.

"It's alright girl, No ones going to hurt you." Crystal said in her soft, gentle voice. She reached out again slowly and touched its head. The horse was obviously uncomfortable but this time let her come closer. "This horse has been mistreated."

"What? No, you must be mistaken. I don't have time for this." The man started to turn around when Kazekage stood in his way. Kaze didn't say anything, but puffed up his chest and stared down with an iron gaze.

"I think I'd like to hear more from the horse." Said Baro and walked slowly to where Crystal was. He saw nothing unusual at first, but noticed several scars that were poorly concealed on its back.

"How much for Lightning?" asked Baro, not reacting to the horse's wounds.

"Well I wasn't planning on selling her… but I could be persuaded. Make an offer." The man sat back in a near by stool, making no attempt to hide the greed in his eyes. Baro checked his belt for his money, he had fifteen silver pieces on him and several copper. Your average horse would go for perhaps fifty silver pieces, but that was an average one. This one was already known to be wild, and looks like it has been abused.

"I'll give you ten silver pieces for the wild one." Baro said and laid it out in his hand. The operator scoffed.

"Only ten pieces?"

Baro nodded. "That's my final offer. It will be challenge enough just to tame him, and you yourself admitted to the damage he has caused you. If anything I am doing you a favor, if I am not mistaken you have not been able to find a buyer."

The operator was disappointed and scowled openly, but nodded and took the pieces.

"She's all yours." He sneered and stormed out of the stable rudely.

The horse moved uncomfortably again as the man left but seemed to calm down the farther away he was.

"It's alright girl." Crystal patted it gently. "No ones going to hurt you again." A few quick sparks flew from her hands and landed on the horse's scars, healing the torn muscles.

"We still need a saddle for her." Baro said and reached over to stroke Lightning's mane.

"Saddle found." Said Kazekage and took one off the wall. Baro starred at him briefly but shrugged and helped him saddle the horse with its new equipment. As they were leaving Baro left a couple copper pieces on the stool.

"What was that for?" asked Crystal.

"I can't spare enough to pay him fully, but I'll give him what I can."

"Why?" asked Kazekage. This time Baro heard actual concern in Kazekage's voice.

Baro looked up at him to answer him. "It was his saddle, his horse. By all rights it should of cost us over seventy pieces for everything. He deserves some compensation, even if he is a jerk." Kazekage looked out ahead now and thought about what Baro had said. This was exactly the kind of thing that kept him up some nights, but soon he shook off these thoughts and continued to scan the crowd.

When they reached the northern gates, Kazekage mounted Whirl whip and Crystal mounted Lightning. "Wait." Said Crystal. "What about you? You can't walk to Shriladen."

"We would move faster with a third horse." Commented Kazekage.

"I suppose you keep a spare one in your jacket?" said Baro jokingly. "I'll just ride on Lightning." Crystal blushed when he jumped on behind her but quickly tried to stop when she noticed Kazekage watching.

"Um yes. Ok." She said embarrassed and quickly asked something to Kazekage. "So, um. Kazekage. What do your friends call you?"

"Friends?" asked Kazekage.

"Yea, you know. People who don't want to kill you." Joked Baro again. Kazekage scratched his head and said, "Well. Some people call me Kaze when they get tired of saying the whole thing."

"Kaze, that's a cool name." Said Crystal. The three chatted lightly as they trotted out the gate with Shadow following behind them.

'Poor Shadow.' Thought Baro to himself, looking back at the lone wolf. 'She sure is faithful, follows Crystal everywhere. Even across country.' Baro wondered whether the wolf was intelligent. It always seemed to stare at him when he wasn't looking, sometimes even when he was looking. 'Weird.'

The ride outside of the city was much like the trail the week before. Golden grasslands mixed with green and brown tones, only now the mountains were behind them. The wind was getting colder now that autumn grew older by the day and made Baro shiver in the chilly weather. The sun slowly moved across the sky through gray clouds and lazily sat on the horizon at sunset. Occasionally Crystal would say something or laugh at one of the animals out on the grasslands but the passage of time seemed slow and hazy.

At nightfall they camped out on under a rocky hill that covered them from the cities view. Kazekage asked after everything was unpacked, "Who has the first watch?"

Baro looked at him confused. "Watch?" Kazekage just laughed lightly.

"You mean to tell me you've been hunted for a week and never thought to watch over one another?" Kazekage asked as if talking to a young boy, which compared to Kaze he was.

"It's just never occurred to me. I'd rather have us both rested and ready to fight them when they find us then half asleep and weary." Baro kicked his foot embarrassed.

Kazekage sighed and looked around. "I guess I'll do it then." He shook his head and mumbled something Baro couldn't make out, but sure it was something about him. He almost felt a surge of magic connect between two of his fingertips, then another. A third spark fell from his fingers and burnt a whole through a dead leaf.

"Come on Baro, help me set up our tent." Crystal said and dragged him away from Kazekage.

"I don't need you to protect me from a fight." Baro said to her hotly, but soft enough that Kaze couldn't hear. She looked at him strangely and whispered to him,

"Don't act like such a stupid boy. I swear all boys want is to fight and defend things."

Baro shrugged off his juvenile anger and let him self settle down. She was right, another minute and he might have unintentionally erupted with energy towards Kazekage. He wasn't even sure what would have happened, but had a feeling it would have involved fire. Lots and lots of fire.

They pitched the tent and set everything up, though this time Crystal wanted to cook some food. She had bought a small amount of special food she said she used to have when she was a kid, and wanted to use some of it for tonight.

As he waited for her to cook the food Baro walked around a little outside of the camp. The stars were out beautifully tonight and the half moon was out above him. He figured while he was here he might as well try to relax and lay down to view the heavens above. Once a man had tried to tell him about the constellations in the stars, something like heroes that were honored by the God's by having them placed in the shining multitude. Baro lost himself trying to trace out the stars and dozed off on the quiet plains.

Soon he was awakened by Kazekage, which made Baro jump. Kaze smiled and gloated, "If you think I scared you, think about what would have happened if I was sent to kill you?"

Baro sighed sharply from the shock and got up. "We'll see."

"The foods ready, lets eat." Kaze said and put an arm around Baro to lead his weary friend to the campfire.

Crystal had laid out the food far better then Baro ever did, he was more of a fan of piling food high and a lot of it instead of presentation. There were three plates, each with sliced fruit, nuts, a pork chop, and potatoes that had been roasted over the fire. She had also filled three cups with a crimson liquid.

"Eat up boys." She said grabbing a plate eagerly. They did likewise and dug right into the foreign food.

"What are these fruits?" asked Baro taking another green and white slice. "They look like apples but they taste different. More sour."

"Oh, those are apples that grow more in the northern groves. My family used to have them all the time."

Baro and Kaze then both sampled the drink. Kazekage sputtered on it and asked disgustedly, "And what would you call this… 'delightful' drink."

Crystal frowned a little bit at his reaction but answered weakly, "That's cranberry juice." Baro took another sip of it.

"I like it, sort of a bittersweet flavor." Baro kept eating and noticed Crystal perked up a bit as they continued to finish off their food.

After supper Baro and Crystal retired to their tent while Kaze hunched himself against a rock to lookout towards Glodin Falls. He seemed well enough by himself but Baro still wondered why he acted so older. He only looked to be about seventeen years old but was dressed like a professional guard. Baro shook off his concerns and replaced them with dreams of sleep. He crawled to his side of the tent and fell straight to sleep.

This time his dreams were normal ones and he didn't feel like it was consuming his energy. Baro was relaxed and happy to slip into unconsciousness thinking of the day's happenings. Suddenly he was thrown out of his dream world back into reality.

Baro awoke to two paws and a black nose in his face. "Follow me." said an ethereal voice, but it was coming from the wolf over top of him. From Shadow. He got off Baro and trotted outside the tent.

It was still night out and the cool wind blew across the camp. Kazekage was asleep against the rock he was leaning off which made Baro smirk, but he decided to follow Shadow. Baro was very concerned about Shadow now, Crystal had said her would companion was a spirit guide but he had no idea what that meant.

Eventually they were far enough from the campsite that no one could hear them, and Shadow sat down. The wolf gave him the same stare Baro had been getting all day. It was friendly, but curious and watchful. Whatever it was it made Baro uncomfortable that the wolf was so serious.

"What do you want?" asked Baro uncertainly. After Baro asked the question, Shadow put a paw forward and greenish blue rays emerged in front of him blinding Baro in a flurry of lights. All of the lighting rose up towards the sky and Baro was forced to throw an arm across his eyes from its brightness.

After several minutes the light ceased. Baro looked up and there before him stood a ghostly man in primitive leather clothing.


	11. Nightmares

Chapter 11: Nightmares

Shadow had revealed himself now as a ghostly image of an elderly man. He looked faintly blue and wore a leather vest decorated with strings of beads and colored paints, much like Crystal's clothing. With a slight smile all the folds and wrinkles of his face shifted, then the ethereal man whispered,

"Welcome to the Spirit World, little warrior."

"The Spirit World." Baro said aloud softly. 'Shadow brought me to the spirit world!' Baro realized, and once he did his mind flooded with other ones. His hands now glowed the bluish tint that Shadow's did, but that's not all that changed. There was no wind on Baro's face, in fact the world seemed to lack air, heat, or any physical feeling at all. Looking around, Baro noticed his body on the ground by his feet, unconscious.

"What do you want?" Baro asked with a touch of fear.

Shadow pointed an outstretched arm at Baro and rumbled in a low and quaking voice, "You Baromosa! I would speak with you. You continue to travel with my charge, but that is not all."

"What do you mean?" asked Baro concerned.

"Why did you not return when Thorv was killed?" Shadow accused.

"Return? You mean to Shriladen?" Shadow nodded. "I've never been there before, how do you know my father?" Baro shrieked. This wolf was scaring him more all the time.

"Your father was a Gehan Knight, one of the King's personal spell warriors. After his death his vows now fall to you."

"My… my father?" stumbled Baro shocked. A spell warrior! Mystical warriors that were skilled with the blade and powerful magics. Excitement welled up within himself to the thought of being like his father, and learning more about Thorv's mysterious past. Thousands of questions pulsed through his mind unchecked, uncontrolled. With all of these new thoughts Baro completely forgot that Shadow was standing there and awaiting a response. Baro then exclaimed, "That doesn't explain how you knew my father. You're a spirit guide! How can you know about him?"

"Your not ready to know yet." Shadows voice calmed down and he folded his arms.

"WHAT?" Baro screamed. "Why did you bring me here? Who the hell are you? Who was my father?" Baro shouted as loud as he could, almost in panic. 'What right does he have to keep this from me?'

"I need to warn you Baromosa. There are things you must know." Shadow reached a hand out to Baro's forehead and flashed a vision through Baro's eyes.

_Baro was now standing in a forest clearing, centered by a large dirt circle that had been stomped flat. Crystal stood smiling in the center of the circle facing an older man that looked like Shadow's ghost image. They both wore their leather armor pieces and kept their arms locked in a battle stance._

_Crystal's smile disappeared when she began to concentrate on his movements and replaced it with a look of discomfort. Shadow was more easy going until he suddenly shot a green bolt of magic at Crystal without warning from his fists. Sparks tingled from his finger tips and surged forward toward her in a solid bolt._

_The longer Baro stayed near the field the more information he absorbed into his memories. This man was named Bauweh, the teacher Crystal had told him about. This ring was a sparring circle, and Crystal was training. _

_Bauweh continued to fire light flurries of bolts towards Crystal, sparks ricocheting from her armor and sizzling her skin. She continued to evade them, but took the fourth head on and canceled its power with her own negative energy._

_It was hard to make out worlds in this dream state, but Baro managed to hear Bauweh chastising Crystal for not using her energy for the offensive. "Strike me!" he had yelled over his magical attacks snapping the air._

_"I'm afraid." She yelled back, but with strangely no fear in her voice. She was obviously uncomfortable with violence, but had controlled her emotions Baro noted._

_She refused again and again, but Bauweh did not ease up on his assault. Instead he let out an intense beam of unyielding energy at Crystal. She attempted to absorb it, but it was far too much for her. Hair and skin burned on her arms from deflecting the energy until she couldn't hold it back anymore and was blown back out of the ring._

_"Crystal! Get over yourself. You need to let go of fear." Bauweh shouted back at her harshly._

_Crystal got up slowly and rubbed her damaged arms. They bled a little bit but were crusted over from the magical overload burn. As she walked back into the ring green sparks jumped across her fingers and formed a building charge. A small sphere of energy quickly formed and Crystal hurled it with incredible speed toward Bauweh's head._

_Now Baro saw a different side of Crystal he had rarely seen before. Fire seemed to burn in her eyes and she lost herself in the destruction at her power. Her old master could barely keep up with the changing forms of Crystals attack; it was too wild and complex. She steadily became faster and faster, launching spheres and bolts of magic in rapid succession. Stray shots landed in shrubs and bursted them into flames._

_Finally Bauweh was forced to revert to one last attempt to spark Crystal's inner power. She had begun to attack and put on a good show of force, but Bauweh could tell a small part of her still held back. "Your still trying to protect me, not actually trying to hit me."_

_This time he generated an even more powerful beam of energy toward her. It pulsed a bluish white and nearly boiled the grass under it, but Crystal was ready for it. In stead of trying to absorb the energy she redirected it to swirl around her, building its charge the longer Bauweh added to it. A vortex formed around her and collected itself into a bigger and bigger stream of power. When it was large enough, Crystal used what remained of her own power to release it forward in a unstoppable wave of terrible speed and strength._

_The blast shook the trees, instantly shriveling up their needles. Insects and rodents died almost immediately when the wave past them, and seriously burned everything else. More then all of this, it caught Bauweh off guard. When the dust settled, he was on the ground._

_As he fell Baro mouthed the words 'no' to himself but nothing came past his lips. Crystal stood there in awe of what she did, chest still heaving and arms outstretched. Sweat dripped from her forehead and on her nose, itching it badly which she ignored in shock of her attack. Bauweh was dead; he remained silent and very still. Before too long Crystal collapsed on her knees and cried uncontrollably she wailed to the sky and tears ran swiftly off her nose and to the ground._

_Baro cried as well, just as sad as she did. He ran over to her, but past through her body forgetting that he was a mere shadow of a person while in his dream. _

Baro was still crying when Shadow, or Bauweh rather, brought him out of the dream. He was on his knees while the ghostly man waited for him to finish. After what seemed an eternity Baro stopped and spoke to him, "Is that why she is so afraid of magic?"

Bauweh nodded. "After that day she has had two parts of herself, the aggressive wild side and the submissive, loving side. During your journey she will be less and less able to keep control of them both."

"So until now…"

"I have been helping her keep control of them. But around you it is becoming near impossible. After tonight, I will not be able to."

Baro thought about what he had said, 'Crystal is in essence two people, and she is going through a metamorphosis as I am now. Who knows what kind of things we will have to go through on this journey.'

"What do you want me to do?" Baro asked quietly.

"She is too unstable around you, and is only a distraction from your journey to Shriladen. It is imperative that you reach the Capitol before your sixteenth birthday."

"Why is that so important? What's at Shriladen?"

Shadow took up his deep voice again to answer Baro, "If you are not trained properly by your sixteenth birthday, you will be unable to complete your training. Once that has happened King Anthar will lose the war unless things change drastically." Baro was released from this conversation when Shadow touched his forehead again. Another vision took over his mind and he once again went into a dream state.

_Crystal and a taller man walked next together dressed completely in black robes. The man wore a bloodstained mask and metal gauntlets while opposite him Crystal clutched an iron staff. Her face seemed in pain and cracked with dried blood. Baro was totally confused about where he was, and there were no memories coming to him to explain this vision._

_They just stood their talking about something Baro couldn't hear until Crystal suddenly dropped to her knees and cried, tears streaming down her scarred cheeks. The masked man immediately lashed out with his spiked gauntlet and tore through her left cheek leaving them bloody and her screaming in agony._

_Baro cried out with her and fought for control but the vision kept playing in his mind, resistance was useless. The masked man kept beating Crystal, first with savage kicks and then by caning her with her own iron staff. Baro felt totally helpless to watch his friend suffer, but rage that she didn't even put up a fight. 'My god, she must have been tortured for months to be this submissive.' Baro though between tears and cries of his own._

He felt sick watching Crystal's torture but soon Bauweh took away the vision. Baro immediately threw up when he came back into his own body and left the spirit world. He was left alone and crying, all that he had left to cling to was a thought passing through his mind.

'That is the future…. If you fail.'


	12. Voices in the Dark

Chapter 12: Voices in the Dark

Baromosa was still crying when Crystal found him. She had woken up from a bad dream and rolled over to find Baro missing from the tent. When she knelt beside him he was still hunched over his knees, his breathing so harsh he couldn't even speak.

"Baro, what happened? Talk to me." Crystal said softly, taking him closer against her. He rested his head on her shoulder and embraced her so tightly she almost jumped in surprise.

"Crystal…" he whispered softly but kept crying into her hair. Through the night Crystal held him until they both fell asleep in each other's arms. Cold winds whirled around them but now Baro ignored them and felt safe now knowing Crystal was right next to him.

After the night went by to calm him nerves, sunlight rose above the horizon and made Baro's nose twitch. He smiled quickly but it disappeared just as quick when he remembered his visions from last night. Crystal was still asleep and clinging to him, having her own happy dreams. 'She stayed with me all night.' Baro thought to himself and brushed Crystal's hair away from her face.

She awoke to his touch and smiled at him. "Your looking better this morning." Crystal said cheerfully.

"Thank you for staying with me last night." Baro said meekly and smiled back at Crystal. "I… had another vision."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Crystal asked concerned. She moved a little closer to Baro's face, but he got up and turned his side to her, avoiding her innocent eyes.

"Crystal, I can't bring you with me to Shriladen." Baro said solemnly.

"But… why?" Crystal asked, a tear forming in her eye. Baro turned back toward her and knelt to her level.

"If you keep following me, I will lead you to your death. I cannot allow that." Baro grabbed her hand and squeezed it softly. "Go back to Snowfall, go back to your home."

Crystal stayed quiet for a few minutes with her mouth wide open. Then she looked down as a tear dipped down her nose and stood up away from Baro.

"How can you ask me to go?" She turned back around and yelled in his face, "You can barely take care of yourself, let alone taking on everything else in your way. You almost were killed!"

"Yes I was. And if that happened how can I protect you too?" Baro snapped back. Crystal took his hand again.

"By taking in on together." She said firmly. Baro tried to pull away from her but she held on to him strongly.

Baro sighed and looked back at her, "Together then." Crystal smiled and gently squeezed his hand before they finally walked back to their tents to get ready for their journey.

After a couple days of riding they reached a group of tents formed at a crossroads. The air grew colder as they neared the mountain, and the horses became uneasy near them as if sensing something invisible to everyone else.

"Look at that!" Crystal exclaimed, pointing to a large black bubble in the earth. Still glossy even after hundreds of years, the bubble seemed to be of molten rock that had cooled.

"What is it?" asked Baro confused.

"Haven't you heard the stories? Fire mages and earth mages worked together to boil the land and fry their enemies. I've heard that there are still trolls trapped in that cursed prison, poor devils. If you look around you might see smaller bubbles, most of them were cleaned up by mages but a few stubborn bubbles are still here."

"They couldn't move that large one in the center?" asked Baro.

Kaze shook is head. "That is Islan's Mark, the spell warrior Islan was the mightiest of the mages who mastered earth and fire. He sucked up at least fifty trolls in that single spot."

Crystal cringed, "Ew! I hate trolls. They make me feel all crawly."

After their discussion they fell strangely quiet. The patchwork tents and desperate look of their surroundings saddened them all and dulled their senses. Several times Baro thought about speaking out to Crystal, but for some reason all sorts of depressing thoughts dominated his mind unwillingly, burying everything else.

His eyes stayed fixed on the molten rock. It seemed to absorb all light around it, like the fires in his dream. The sky was cloudy as it had been all day but it seemed even blacker now. Wordlessly the three companions split up and explored the town by them selves, Baro on foot and Kaze and Crystal on their horses.

_Baro's point on view:_

Baro weaved his way between tents and met eyes with the refugees. Most of their faces were indifferent or hopeless, some even angry. When it was too much Baro played with the toy Crystal gave him weeks ago in his hand, trying to distract himself from the depression around him.

Once the rain had finally come, Baro almost welcomed it. The splashes against his face cooled it and its wetness softened his cheeks that were dried from travel. The light drizzle sent most refugees inside, only a few stood uncomfortable outside near a fire.

Baro walked over and sat down next to them. He received grunts as a reply but they were friendly enough or rather apathetic to him. The old man next to him was the only one smiling; he nodded at Baro and started in some idle chat. He was wrapped in a crimson cloak, and his face was covered with unshaven white hair. Blue eyes stared out at Baro like they were searching for something, making Baro move in small, nervous ways.

"You seem different, have I met you before?" Baro asked him. The old man just laughed.

"No you haven't, but that's not the only thing you notice do you?"

"You laughed, how is it that you and I are the only ones who aren't… depressed." Baro looked down at the fire and waited for an answer.

"It's the one thing that makes us the same, you must be a wizard to resist such a strong effect." The old man smiled and got up from his seat, walking into a near by shelter.

'Careful Baro, this could be a trap.' He told himself, and followed the old man into the tent. It was filled with scattered papers and books, old bottles and the scent of cheap wine filled the room. The soft pattern of the rain was broken by the old man first.

"How long have you known about your abilities?" the old man asked casually.

"Not long enough it seems." Baro replied quickly, not sure how much he wanted to share with this stranger.

"I need your help son, there are dark forces at work. I have the feeling you know a little about magic, and I'm not as strong as I used to be." The old man at down and wheezed out a few labored breaths. "My names Kamen. I've studied these people for the last few weeks. Once in awhile there's someone who can keep their head, but not enough to be of any use. That's where you come in."

Baro nodded. 'These people are being affected by something, its my duty to help them as in was my fathers.' He thought, resigning himself to trust the old wizard.

"How can I help?" Baro asked finally, looking over to Kamen.

Raising a finger he said, "All in good time. Walk with me, I'll explain on the way." And with a twirl of his cloak Kamen lead Baro out to the black glossy Mark.

When they reached the rock, Kamen told Baro to put his hands on it, which he did. "What do you feel young one? Concentrate on the smooth surface, let your mind flow to the energies around you."

Baro thought deeply about the rock, resurfacing memories and ideas he had been pondering. At first there were only the depressing surface thoughts, but Baro worked and kept thinking until he had broken his mental barrier like he had with Crystal. He could almost sense some evil across the rift, but it fought back and repulsed him further.

"Kamen, the wizard. He's in contact with the Mark. He's trying to hide his thoughts from me." Baro said under strain. A vein in his temple pulsed.

Kamen smiled, "Good, good. You are quite adept then. We need more power though, even together we couldn't break his concentration or hold on the Mark. Maybe if we had help we could break him and then we could sink the mark.

Baro nodded, "I have a friend who can help. A girl the same age as me, I think she's strong enough." Baro stopped his concentration and looked over to Kamen. "But after I want more answers from you, how did you know I was a magic user so quickly?"

"All in good time my friend. Suffice to say I'm very old and remember many things. But lets go, the sooner we can destroy the mark the sooner I can get you on your way to Shriladen." Kamen winked slyly and walked down the road, bringing Baro with him.

Kaze's P.O.V.

Kazekage drifted through the depression that flooded across people's faces. A soft splatter of rain hit his cheeks to make him look up occasionally when the dark clouds drizzled rain, but not much changed. He continued his walk down muddy streets until he noticed a familiar face.

A woman stood in the doorway of her tent, glaring at Kazekage. She was dressed in old, moth eaten clothes like all of the others, and her face was pale contrasting bright red hair and fiery eyes. Kaze started to walk away when the women screamed,

"MURDERER!" The women pointed an accusing finger at him. Kaze quickly looked around but no one even looked up at the outburst so he just stood surprised and listened to her ranting about his no good qualities. She continued yelling about her murdered husband and other things, but Kaze had to walk away leaving her screaming into nothing.

'I hadn't thought about the families of my targets. I always thought I was hunting the scum of the earth, not becoming it.' Kaze thought to himself, looking down at the ground before him while he walked. His black hair had become wet and tangled on the sides of his face and matched his dark eyes.

He pondered on new thoughts while he stumbled down the encampment, the suffering seemed to weigh him down but he trudged on through mud until Baro broke his wandering.

"Baro!" He shouted, running over to his friend. "Baro I can't take this place, some evil looms over everything." Kaze was out of breath and hugged Baro, happy to see him not a depressed drone like the others.

Baro nodded and pulled away. "It's the Mark my friend, it amplifies all of these feelings. We need Crystal's help to destroy it, can you find her?"

Kaze perked up at his new task, "Sure, sure. I'll start right away." He ran off with a new alertness, glad there was something he could do to right a few wrongs of his past. Baro looked a little strange, almost as nervous as a feral animal by his nervousness at sudden noises, but Kaze didn't worry. 'Everything will be fixed soon; all I have to do is track down Crystal. Sounds easy enough.'

When he was well away from Baro, a voice approached him from behind. "Hello again Kazekage."

Kaze turned around to see the smug owner of that voice was Raik, his old accomplis. He was dressed in his usual armor, the two handed sword of his still stained in blood. His lips curled slightly at seeing Kaze, and his gaze echoed an unsure motive.

"I need you Kaze, together we can finish the job." Raik said as if it was a sure thing.

"No, never again." Kaze shouted out. "I've been up nights thinking about what we did, and all for what? Gold?"

Raik snorted. "You don't understand, our 'employers' have doubled their offer! Baro doesn't even have to be alive anymore, if we kill him every desire of ours will be fulfilled.

Kaze thought about his words, but the greed disgusted him. "No! No more, I can't let you hurt Baro. There is something about him, he could bring an end to this suffering and all others like it." Kaze protested and drew his two broadswords.

"If you had joined me you could have been fat and happy until the end of the world! What do we care about the rest of the world if we can have all the gold and food we want, women as we desire them and enough land to support anything we want! But now you are my enemy, so you will meet an enemies fate." Afterwards Raik's face twisted in contempt and he lunged with the hilt of his sword and with a swift motion swung it into Kaze.

Kazekage was ready for it though, he had worked with Raik for a long time. Deflecting it easily the battle raged on, Kaze using a light fast attack and Raik using a solid, slow defense. The only time he was not on the defensive was when he was powering his sword at Kaze.

They tried many times to best each other, but their swords seemed to grow heavy at an unusually fast rate. When the burning in his muscles became too much Kaze dropped one of the swords and continued the fight with just one. Soon he tired of that too and they both dropped their swords to grapple each other like dogs. Letting out howls of pain and rage, they rolled, kicked, and clawed each other like savage animals.

'This mark, it drains are spirit. Erodes everything to the nerves." Kaze thought until he finally got Raik pinned down and beat unconscious in a chokehold. "Sleep my confused friend." He said, and breathed deep before running to continue his search for Crystal.


	13. Two New Mysteries

Chapter 13:

Crystal's Point of View:

Crystal's sensing were in a phase of numbing and sharpening what seemed to be all at once. Her magic seemed to scream someone was watching her at times, then fade away and turn into a blurred scattering of life. The dreary outline that people seemed to cast off made them look like shadows too her, mere specters of their selves.

'Isn't there help for these people?' she thought to herself in the mist of thoughts she tried to break through. Besides he scattered senses, Crystal was having a hard time simply thinking at all. Every time she did have an intelligent though, it would turn into anger and she would give someone a rude stare or a mean growl.

'What's wrong with these people? They're so mean!' she thought to herself again when she bumped into a short man.

"Get out of the way!" Crystal barked and pushed by him, but stopped thinking about it when the short man grabbed her arms and looked at her. He had bushy eyebrows and a small green hood covering his face, though obscure he wasn't very old and Crystal didn't try to move since he seemed to draw all of her senses to him. All of these things confused her and they stood standing there, him holding her arms.

"Yes, you will do nicely." He said and as he did this short rather plain man began to change, casting back his hood and letting go of her, he seemed to grow to be over six feet tall instantly. Dark black locks of hair messily sprouted everywhere on his head giving him long, wild hair. The eyes brows he had even changed to thin lines, and his eyes burned an intense red pupil surrounded by pure darkness. All of his clothes seemed to bleed black ink as they changed, and his grip returned back on her arm making Crystal scream out in pain and anger.

"That was but a taste my new apprentice. You will soon learn loyalty and beg for me to hurt you like this again. Come." He said with absolutely no care for her and dragged her by the one arm, branding her with the iron hot glove her wore, magically powered with searing heat.

"Let gooooooooo! Oh god please, what do you want? AHHHHH! No no no plughhhhh!" Crystal tried to say words past that but the pain that was burning into her was unbearable. She bucked and writhed under the gauntlet that held her, smoking and stinking of burning flesh all the while frying into her arm more. Her wound bled and was dried instantly as the glove seemed to glow white and gain more heat.

"Stop screaming! No one cares anyway… they are under my control." The man stated and his face seemed to gain a shadowy complexion while he replaced his hood.

'BARO!' her mind screamed out as it finally broke through whatever barrier held her before. For a small flicker of time, she could feel Baro's mind, and just as quickly it vanished while the dark man through her onto the back of his horse and rode away.

Baro's point of view:

"Crystal?!" Baro yelled out, feeling her mind in pain and tried to sense her, but for some reason a barrier kept dowsing whatever powers he wanted to summon. 'This mark, it's like a pacifier, or maybe a drug.' He thought and a tear fell off his nose from the uncertainty of it all.

Kamen watched from behind him, seeing the same sadness he once could feel from such things. "It's ok my son, we must move on. We cannot find your friend with such an evil over this place." He offered to Baro to try and stir up his hopes.

"I know you are right… but that doesn't make it easy." Baro said softly, fumbling with the metal cube Crystal had given him. The cold steel soothed his fingertips, but he felt a second tear come down before he stood up to keep walking. 'I knew she would get hurt, why was she so stubborn?' he thought and tried to unravel the little bit of information that she had sent him. 'Was she in fire?' he wondered and walked out to the black bubble of earth that centered the city.

Kamen and Baro stood there for a moment before Kaze came up behind them and was drawn to their side. For a few minutes it was quiet and they just sort of looked around.

"Are we really going to do this?" Kaze asked and scratched the back of his neck.

"Without another mage, it could be a little risky. You never found Crystal?" Baro asked and put his hand on the smooth black surface to see if he could sense her through the channeled energies.

"No, but I did find and old 'friend.' Raik is still pretty set on ripping your head off." Kaze said with a small smile and looked around over the roof tops.

"Wait… the mark. It's getting weaker, I think who is using it is getting farther away…" Baro started to think and Kamen joined in as well.

"You're right, I can start to feel some of my magic coming back." Kamen said excitedly and looked at Baro. "Do you think you can concentrate enough to help me?" he asked and tried not to put too much pressure on him.

"Yea… I'll be alright." Baro shook his head and put down the cube so he could stop thinking about Crystal. 'I won't forget you Crystal, you helped me a lot.' He thought as he positioned his hands on the mark, then took a few steps back as they began casting"Just channel your power into me, I'll handle the spell casting. I don't want to risk losing you, you're in a very confused state right now." Kamen said solemnly and moved his arms in the forms for his spells.

Baro nodded and took out a deep breath to try and calm his heart. While Kaze took a few steps back and leaned on a corner on a building, Baro felt the slight tingle of energy while he channeled it into a movable form and transferred it into Kamen who consumed it like it was water. Every time he felt the currents of energy, Baro loved to reflect on how it worked. 'Maybe someday I'll truly understand these mysteries.' He thought and wondered about some of his observations.

Kamen's forehead muscles strained like he was chewing on tough meat and the varying motions and words he mumbled became more blurred like he was gaining speed. This made Baro more curious but he concentrated on evening out his drain of energy, trying to give Kamen a steady and constant flow to work with.

Suddenly the change started, the Mark remained a solid form, but the earth under in started to sink making people back up and snap out of their delusions. Baro's mind went into the state he experienced with Crystal, and the lines of energy became more apparent. Energy that had been pouring from the Mark into people now struggled with Kamen directly, trying to push the Mark back up. Kamen grinned a strainful grimace, but still fought on with the opposing magical force.

"He's fighting back?" Kaze asked, a little unsure of what was happening and backed up even more, grasping his swords. In his thoughts, Baro could almost feel the dark man and Crystal over the rift, Crystal who was much weaker then the man who tried to subdue Kamen.

'Crystal!' he shouted out, diverting a small portion of energy to call out to her. This man the dark man put a little strain on Baro's mind, at first stopping his channeling but Baro pushed back, gritting his teeth as he brought Kamen more energy. 'I'm not letting go.' He thought and struggled while small spheres of purple energy blocked his vision.

"Lets see how you like it." Baro thought and tried to use his power the best he knew how by sending energy to push the man back. Immediately Baro dropped to his knees and stopped channeling, letting out a rapid breath from the incredible strain. 'Oh my god!' he thought while energy burned like fire in his veins, making him sizzle and finally lose his mind.

"Ugh, What's the matter with you?" Kamen yelled out and with on final push shoved the dark man from their minds to finish his spell. The Mark began to sink faster and faster, soon being several feet below the surface, then several yards and seemed to look smaller and smaller as it dropped. When it had dropped as far as Kamen wanted he sealed the earth back up and sat on the ground peacefully, meditating to him self.

Kaze ran over to Baro as people walked out to the center, confused and wondering faces on themselves. The very clouds seemed to go away, making the sun shine through on the broken down camp. Even still Baro laid there, clutching his legs close to his body in shock. His eyes stared blankly at nothing while Kaze rolled him on his back.

"Oh no, come on Baro. You can come out of this, I know you can." Kaze said worried, looking over at Kamen to do something. But Kamen did not get up to look at Baro, he already knew what had happened and had no way of doing anything.

"He's been mana burned directly after suffering such a mana drain. He's lucky not to be disintegrated instantly, let alone in this dimension." Kamen said plainly and opened his eyes to look at Kaze.

"But how?" Kaze asked confused, starring at Baro.

"He doesn't know that much about magic I'm afraid, not as much as I thought. He attempted to cast a spell over several miles and just didn't have the energy. The dark lord tried to dump his extra energy into Baro which was way more then he could handle, making the energy that pulsed through Baro burn him. Mages call it Mana burning, when our mana burns through us causing damage."

"Can't anything be done?" Kaze asked and stood up, wanting to run away and get help. Kamen stood up to try and stop him.

"The only thing we can do is wait, If I had more energy I might be able to do something, but I used my energy to finish Baro's spell before it completely burned him. I'm too old for all this." Kamen sighed and suddenly stopped to look at a woman approaching them from the crowd. Though everyone seemed happier now or at least serious about their surroundings, this woman seemed different just by the way she walked up to them. She had dark curly hair that rested on her shoulders, and wore a simple light purple cloak that covered her body making her look like she floated along easily. Brilliant emerald eyes shined at them as she looked around looking unsure of everything.

"Do any of you know what has been happening? I feel so lost… this last month has been a blur." She said to them in a bright voice, but she softened when she saw Baro lying on the ground. "Is he all right? She inquired and motioned to him, looking down a bit worried.

"Oh, he's just fine. Can we help you?" Kaze lied, not wanting any more people involved with his friend. He eyed her suspiciously, showing his sword to her as if to make a point.

"I have healing abilities." She stated calm him, and as tough as Kaze was being she gently brushed him aside without him resisting, and knelt beside Baro. Kamen watched with interest, eyeing her with the same spark he had when he met Baro.

"Healers like you are quite rare." He said quietly, kneeling side he while she worked on Baro. The women smiled and put her hand on Baro's forehead, then spaced two of her fingers on the bridge of his nose.

"Healing is always easier on young people like us." She replied, referring to herself and Baro. Thought she had darker skin Kamen nodded but metal noted they had a slight resemblance, but couldn't quite place how.

Small little oscillations of energy began moving between the girl and Baro in small light blue sparks. Baro was just able to breath very shallowly, but it was an improvement. Her hands moved over his chest and abdomen, sending more little blue sparks as she worked, moving her hands in circular motions.

The next thing Baro found was a slight consciousness which pulled out to anyone who would listen. She was the first, he tried to link minds but wasn't strong enough, so the girl helped him out be linking for him.

'Are… are you crystal?' he asked to the strange mind he never sensed before.

'No, my names Ember. I'm going to take care of you.' She thought back to him softly and continued his work, feeling him pass out under her.

'Thank you…' Baro mumbled in a small thought and felt his finger twitch before a large pain rocked through his spine, making him scream out and Ember immediately frowned, quickening her healing to figure out what was happening.


End file.
